Redbone..........Glad to correspond with you again; also great to hear that your regimen is working out so well for you.
Owl........I have not done any "hard core" research in many years, not even on the Internet. Back in the 80's I would go to medical libraries, local college libraries, and public libraries. I would scour through periodicals, medical journals, and various books to include reference, science/biology, health and wellness. I would also speak with any doctor, pharmacist, and health food store employee that I could find. Further, I would call and talk to presidents of companies that were selling wigs and hair systems, as they, naturally, had an interest in the subject of hair loss. One of the presidents I spoke with actually had imported a Minoxidil "salt" scalp product from a foreign country. It's chemical structure was very close to that of Minoxidil. We had a clandestine meeting so I could examine the product. It was professionaly packaged and contained very legitimate looking info. and chemical comparisons. I don't think it was legally imported and he was very leary about marketing it to the general public. With a very unsophisticated 80's Web, products like that were not widely known about.
One book I found particulary interesting and ahead of its time was "Life Extension", by Durk Phearson and Sandy Shaw. I also found an article on spyronolactone in some old reference journal or book. I would also look in areas that many would not think to look in such as business periodicals - that's how I found out about finasteride. so soon. From my other research, I was able to tie the DHT reducing property of finasteride. (which was only being marketed as a prostate drug) to hair loss. The DHT connection with hair loss has been made for decades. There are numerous chemicals that can promote hair growth and reduce hair loss and I expect that prior to genetic manipulation there will be several new pills and topicals that will be marketed and useful for hair loss.
It was pretty funny back then.......I learned so much after the first couple of years that when I would meet new Dr.'s and Pharmacists they would often assume that I was a Dr. or a Pharmaceutical Chemist!
Metgalis......MSD - Merck and Co. (manufacturer of finasteride.) was formerly Merck, Sharpe and Dome when they first got FDA approval for finasteride.
about - I truly believe that science is on the brink of finding TRUE CURES for a plethora of ailments including male pattern baldness via genetic engineering. It is right around the corner fellas...........MUCH closer than most of you think. 