An observational study in Alopecia Areata(AA), Alopecia Areata and Alopecia Areata (& Ophiasis), sponsored by Istanbul Training and Research Hospital. Recruiting at 1 site in Turkey (Türkiye). Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-30.
Sponsored by Istanbul Training and Research Hospital · Observational
This study aims to investigate the potential role of the ferroptosis pathway in the pathogenesis and clinical course of Alopecia Areata (AA). Serum concentrations of two key ferroptosis biomarkers-Glutathione Peroxidase 4 (GPX4), a primary antioxidant enzyme protecting against lipid peroxidation, and Malondialdehyde (MDA), a major end-product of lipid membrane damage-will be quantitatively measured using Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) kits.
A total of 156 participants will be enrolled, consisting of 104 patients diagnosed with Alopecia Areata (subdivided into acute and chronic cohorts) and 52 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Serum biomarker levels will be statistically compared among the groups to determine their diagnostic value. Furthermore, these biomarker levels will be correlated with clinical disease extension evaluated via the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score and objective trichoscopic activity findings (such as black dots, yellow dots, and exclamation mark hairs). The ultimate goal of this cross-sectional study is to evaluate whether serum GPX4 and MDA can serve as reliable objective biomarkers for monitoring disease severity, staging, and trichoscopic activity in Alopecia Areata management.The ultimate goal of this cross-sectional study is to evaluate whether serum GPX4 and MDA can serve as reliable objective biomarkers for monitoring disease severity, staging, and trichoscopic activity in Alopecia Areata management.
220 studies on the registry are indexed under Alopecia Areata; 61 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 156 is below the median of 370 across 39 observational studies indexed under Alopecia Areata.
Browse Alopecia Areata studies →Istanbul Training and Research Hospital is the lead sponsor of 66 studies on the registry; 15 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
The study population will be selected from patients who present to the Department of Dermatology at Istanbul Training and Research Hospital and meet all the eligibility criteria. The sample will consist of two primary groups: a patient group diagnosed with Alopecia Areata (further stratified into acute and chronic cohorts based on disease activity and duration) and an age- and sex-matched healthy control group comprised of volunteers with no prior history of alopecia or systemic disease.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
A condition in which the immune system attacks the body’s own tissues, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, type 1 diabetes or inflammatory bowel disease.
Immunotherapy studies often leave out active autoimmune disease, and some name exceptions, such as thyroid disease on replacement hormone. Check the exceptions this study lists.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Anti-inflammatory medicines such as prednisone, prednisolone and dexamethasone — not the anabolic steroids used for muscle.
Studies differ in what they allow: check which steroid medicines, routes (tablets, injections, creams, inhalers, eye drops) and doses this study accepts.
A weakened immune system. It can come from an illness, such as HIV or some blood cancers, or from medicines that turn the immune system down, for example after an organ transplant or for an autoimmune disease; steroids at higher doses count.
Read whether the line is about a condition or about medicines, and which medicines and doses it means.
Malignancy means cancer. Criteria about another or earlier malignancy ask whether you have had a different cancer, usually within a set number of years.
Some are commonly allowed, such as treated skin cancers other than melanoma and early cancers removed completely — check the exceptions this study lists.
Autoimmune disease
A condition in which the immune system attacks the body’s own tissues, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, type 1 diabetes or inflammatory bowel disease.
Immunotherapy studies often leave out active autoimmune disease, and some name exceptions, such as thyroid disease on replacement hormone. Check the exceptions this study lists.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Corticosteroids (steroids)
Anti-inflammatory medicines such as prednisone, prednisolone and dexamethasone — not the anabolic steroids used for muscle.
Studies differ in what they allow: check which steroid medicines, routes (tablets, injections, creams, inhalers, eye drops) and doses this study accepts.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Immunosuppression
A weakened immune system. It can come from an illness, such as HIV or some blood cancers, or from medicines that turn the immune system down, for example after an organ transplant or for an autoimmune disease; steroids at higher doses count.
Read whether the line is about a condition or about medicines, and which medicines and doses it means.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Cancer (malignancy)
Malignancy means cancer. Criteria about another or earlier malignancy ask whether you have had a different cancer, usually within a set number of years.
Some are commonly allowed, such as treated skin cancers other than melanoma and early cancers removed completely — check the exceptions this study lists.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Patients aged 18-65 formally diagnosed with Alopecia Areata, presenting with active hair loss or new patch formations within the last 6 months.
Patients aged 18-65 formally diagnosed with Alopecia Areata, presenting with stable hair loss patches for at least 6 months with no signs of active shedding.
Age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers with no personal or family history of alopecia, and no active systemic inflammatory, metabolic, or autoimmune conditions.
Serum GPX4 Levels
Quantitative measurement of serum Glutathione Peroxidase 4 (GPX4) concentrations (expressed in ng/mL) via Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) to evaluate the systemic activity of the ferroptosis pathway.
Time frame: Baseline
Serum Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels
Quantitative measurement of serum Malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations (expressed in ng/mL) via Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) to evaluate the systemic activity of the ferroptosis pathway
Time frame: Baseline
Correlation With Clinical Severity (SALT Score)
Evaluation of the statistical correlation between serum ferroptosis biomarker levels (GPX4 and MDA) and the clinical extent of hair loss, scored objectively using the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT score, which ranges from 0% to 100%, where higher percentages indicate more severe hair loss).
Time frame: Baseline
Correlation With Trichoscopic Activity Findings
Evaluation of the statistical relationship between serum ferroptosis biomarker levels (GPX4 and MDA) and the presence or count of objective trichoscopic signs of disease activity-specifically black dots, yellow dots, exclamation mark hairs, broken hairs, and cadaverous hairs-observed during dermoscopic examination of the scalp lesions.
Time frame: Baseline
Plan to share: No — Individual participant data will not be shared externally due to institutional data privacy regulations and ethical committee restrictions regarding patient confidentiality.
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Istanbul Training and Research Hospital