Systems and methods for predicting response to minoxidil for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia

A method for selecting a treatment for a human subject suffering from androgenetic alopecia, comprising:

• obtaining a sample from the human subject, comprising one or more hairs that have been plucked from the human subject, said hairs comprising one or more hair follicles;
• performing a colorimetric assay to measure minoxidil sulfotransferase activity in the sample, thereby generating an activity value indicative of the minoxidil sulfotransferase activity level in the sample, wherein the assay comprises the step of placing the sample in a reaction mixture comprising an indicator dye and minoxidil, and wherein during the assay, the indicator dye undergoes a color change that correlates with the amount of minoxidil sulfotransferase activity level in the sample, and wherein the activity value correlates with said color change;
• comparing the activity value to one or more standardized activity values, each standardized activity value representing either high or low expected minoxidil response for hair re-growth or retention for a class of patients including the subject, thereby producing an indication of either high or low expected minoxidil response for hair re-growth or retention for the subject at a particular dosage of minoxidil;
• and
• presenting the indication to the human subject.