DHT causes hair follicles to go into their Telogen resting phase faster and remain dormant longer which causes hairs produced by affected follicles to become thinner and weaker with each growth cycle. Affected hair follicles generally contain a larger number of DHT receptor sites where the molecule can actually plug into and attack the follicle.
In male pattern hair loss, each successive cycle results in the production of weaker hairs being produced by the affected follicles, until the hair never breaks the surface of the skin. Once DHT binds to large numbers of receptors of the hair follicles of the scalp, the follicles are shut down and lie dormant.
The role of DHT receptor sites in hair loss also linked to genetics and hormonal influences since each hair follicle has a predetermined amount of sites that DHT can attach to. In a study comparing the follicles between hair-covered and bald male scalps, it was found that bald scalps had twice as many sites for DHT as their covered counterparts.
Hormones also play a role in hair loss. At birth, each of us has a certain number of hair follicles (roughly 100,000 on the scalp). In the case of male pattern baldness, it appears that those follicles positioned over the crown and front of the head, the infamous balding horseshoe, are usually sensitive to DHT.
Surgeries and certain prescription medications
may also bring about hair loss. | 
