Scientists in the US have claimed that a new injection that could solve male hair loss once and for all could be available within the next five years.

The science behind the new injection relies on the hair growth stimulating properties of human fat, and would use fat from a patient's stomach to spur on hair growth on their scalp. The properties of the fat were discovered by scientists at Yale University, who were trying to find out what prompted hair to grow.

One of the researchers, Valerie Horsley, said that immature fat cells had been found to produce chemical signals that 'wake up' dormant follicles, leading to the production of hair. She said that tests on mice had so far been very successful, adding that they were "very close" to homing in on the key cells in humans.

Horsley said they were also working on different means of delivering the fat to the affected areas, creams or lotions containing the hair-triggering chemicals that could be rubbed on to the scalp being explored as an accessible option.

The technology could be applied as a solution both to men suffering with male-pattern baldness and to men and women suffering from alopecia.