Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks hair follicles and disrupts their natural cycle through phases of growth, regression, and rest. The disease manifests with distinct hair loss patterns, and what causes it and how to treat it are open questions. We first construct an ODE model for alopecia areata in follicles which are in stage of growth. The dynamical system describes the behavior of immune cells and signals highlighted by experimental studies as primarily involved in the disease development. We perform sensitivity analysis and linear stability and bifurcation analysis to investigate the importance of processes in relation to the levels of immune cells. Our findings indicate that the pro-inflammatory pathway via the messenger protein interferon-gamma and the immunosuppressive pathway via hair follicle immune privilege agents are crucial. Next, we incorporate follicle cycling into the model and explore what processes have the greatest impact on the duration of hair growth in healthy versus diseased follicles. The results suggest that some processes matter in both cases, but there are differences, as well. Finally, the study presents and analyzes a PDE model which captures patterns characteristic of hair loss in alopecia areata.
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