Hair Academic Innovative Research Unit

Welcome to the website for the laboratory of Dr. Maryanne Makredes Senna at the Department of Dermatology at Massachusetts General Hospital. Our unit conducts clinical research related to hair loss including research on the causes, prevention, evaluation and management of diseases that affect hair, both in adolescents and adults.

We also invite collaborators from industry, research and academia interested in hair loss diseases to get in touch by emailing HAIR@partners.org.

Meet Our Team

Maryanne M. Senna, MD
Principal Investigator
Dr. Senna, co-director of the Hair Loss Clinic is a board-certified dermatologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of hair loss. In addition to treating patients for hair loss: she is developing a specialized Alopecia Research Unit to identify new treatment methods.  Diagnosed herself with alopecia in the past, Dr. Senna has personal insight and empathy for her patients.     

Mariko Yasuda, MD
Investigator
Dr. Yasuda, co-director of the Hair Loss Clinic is a board certified dermatologist and dermatopathologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of hair loss. In addition to her clinical skills, Dr. Yasuda has additional expertise in interpreting scalp biopsy specimens in patients who have alopecia.

Lynn A. Drake, MD
Investigator
Dr. Drake is a world-renown expert and lecturer on hair loss who provides additional consultations.

Jean-Phillip Okhovat, MD, MPH
Alopecia Clinical and Research Fellow
Dr. Okhovat is a clinical and research fellow dedicated to studying hair loss disorders. In addition to helping to diagnose and treat patients, he is actively engaged in conducting epidemiological research to better understand and treat hair loss disorders and develop new therapies. 

Dina Hagigeorges
Clinical Research Coordinator
As a coordinator in the H. A. I. R Unit, Dina is passionate about bringing quality care to patients with hair disorders.  She is also a coordinator for the Scalp Cooling Project at Mass General (MGH), a joint venture between the MGH Hair Loss Clinic and MGH Breast Oncology Department. 

Athena Manatis-Lornell
Clinical Research Coordinator
Athena Manatis-Lornell is the coordinator for the H.A.I.R. Unit. With a background in project management and an interest in clinical research, Athena is responsible for organizing the set up of studies and aiding in their implementation.

Dustin H. Marks, BS
Alopecia Graduate Assistant (Medical Student)
Currently on a research gap year from medical school, Dustin is truly thrilled to be part of the H.A.I.R team at MGH. With a passion for both public health and dermatology, he is particularly interested in investigating the impact of race, gender, and socioeconomic status on the development, manifestation, and treatment of dermatologic and hair disorders.

Retrospective chart review of patient characteristics in lichen planopilaris
The purpose of this retrospective review is to collect and analyze data on patients affected by LPP in order to gain a better understanding of the epidemiology of this disease.
Role: Senna, Principal Investigator: 2016P002272: 10/31/16-10/31/18

Clinico-pathological analysis of lichen planopilaris
The purpose of this study is to better characterize the histologic and immunohistochemical staining patterns in LPP and compare them to a control group of non-scarring alopecia.
Role: Senna, Principal Investigator: 2016P002867: 1/24/17-1/24/19

Design and validation of a new assessment tool for lichen planopilaris, the Boston Grade of Activity in Lichen Planopilaris (Boston GOAL)
The purpose of this study is to develop an assessment tool to evaluate the severity and disease activity in lichen planopilaris.
Role: Senna, Principal Investigator: 2016P002620: 2/10/17-1/10/2019

Alopecia Clinic New Patient Intake Form Database
The purpose of this medical records review is to collect and analyze data on patients affected by a wide range of hair loss disorders in order to gain a better understanding of different types of alopecia and identify any commonalities between patients with the same diagnosis.
Role: Senna, Principal Investigator: 2017P001024: 6/6/2017-6/6/2019

Cicatricial Alopecia Survey
The aim of this study is to collect a diverse amount of information, as well as scalp photographs, from patients who suffer from different types of cicatricial (scarring) alopecia, not limited to lichen planopilaris (LPP), central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA) and frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA). This survey will be distributed by study staff at the Cicatricial Alopecia Research Foundation (CARF) 2018 Patient-Doctor Conference being held in Philadelphia, PA, USA from June 8-10, 2018.
Role: Senna, Principal Investigator: 2018P000770: 4/17/2018-4/17/2019

Prevalence and Risk Factors for the Development of Cicatricial Alopecia: A Population Study of Hair Loss in African American Women Across the United States
The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of CCCA among participants selected from a cohort of 59,000 African American women across the United States who participated in the 1995 NIH-funded Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS).
Role: Senna, Site Principal Investigator: 2017P002290 : 11/22/2017-11/22/2018

If you are interested in hearing more about potential projects, please email HAIR@partners.org

H.A.I.R.
Hair Academic Research Unit

Maryanne M. Senna, MD
Principle Investigator

Please email us HAIR@partners.org for more information on potential projects or with any questions. We also invite you to visit the Massachusetts General Hospital Hair Loss Clinic website.