Overview of Skin Whitening Agents: Drugs and Cosmetic Products

Couteau, Céline; Coiffard, Laurence

doi:10.3390/cosmetics3030027

Cited by 135 publications

(107 citation statements)

References 91 publications

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“…Skin whitening has been practiced for several centuries by people from a variety of ethnic backgrounds [1,2,17,[20][21][22]. The particular enthusiasm for skin whitening agents originated in the 1960s, driven by the incidental discovery of the whitening action of hydroquinone on the black skins of U.S. workers daily exposed to this agent in the rubber industry.…”

Section: Why Such a Practice?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Skin whitening or lightening refers to the practice, deeply embedded in many ethnic groups [1], of using natural or synthetic substances to lighten the skin tone or provide an even complexion by reducing the melanin concentration in the skin [2]. The use of whitening agents can be driven by medicinal necessity in the case of persons suffering from dermatological conditions linked to an abnormal accumulation of melanin (e.g., melasma, senile lentigo, etc.)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Skin Whitening Cosmetics: Feedback and Challenges in the Development of Natural Skin Lighteners

et al. 2016

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Abstract:With the public's growing interest in skin whitening, lightening ingredients only used under dermatological supervision until recently, are more and more frequently incorporated into cosmetic formulas. The active agents that lighten skin tone are either natural or synthetic substances, and may act at various levels of melanogenesis. They are used to treat various skin pigmentation disorders or simply to obtain a lighter skin tone as whiter skin may be synonymous of wealth, health, youth, and/or beauty in different cultures. However, recent studies demonstrated the adverse effects of some of these ingredients, leading to their interdiction or restricted use under the European Directive and several other international regulations. After an overview of skin whitening practices and the associated risks, this article provides insight into the mechanisms involved in melanin synthesis and the biological assays available to attest the lightening activity of individual ingredients. The legislation dealing with the use of skin lighteners is then discussed. As traditional depigmenting agents such as hydroquinone and corticosteroids are of safety concern, the potential of natural extracts has been investigated more and more; finally, a synthesis of three years of research in our laboratory for such plant extracts will be given.

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Section: Why Such a Practice?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Skin Whitening Cosmetics: Feedback and Challenges in the Development of Natural Skin Lighteners

et al. 2016

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“…This depigmenting action of AZA was correlated to its inhibitory effect on thioredoxin reductase pathway [3] . AZA was also found to exhibit antiinflammatory, antimicrobial (Propionibacterium acnes, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli) and antikeratinising activities [4][5][6] . These activities were attributed to the inhibitory action of AZA on the production of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6 or TNFα) [7] , proteins/DNA synthesis within the bacterial cell [7,8] and filaggrin expression in keratinocytes [9] .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A Validated Stability-indicating RP-HPLC Method for Analysis of Azelaic Acid in Pharmaceuticals

Malik¹,

Kaur²

2018

pharmaceutical-sciences

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The study is designed to develop a simple, rapid, selective and robust stability indicating reversed phasehigh performance liquid chromatography method for quantitative analysis of azelaic acid in pharmaceutical preparations. The chromatographic separation and estimation of azelaic acid was carried out using a Waters high-performance liquid chromatography system employing Kromasil 100-5C18 column (250× 4.6 mm; 5 µm particle size) as a stationary phase. The mobile phase comprised of 75 volumes of sodium di-hydrogen orthophosphate (pH 3.5; 50 mM) and 25 volumes of acetonitrile, eluted at a flow rate of 1.2 ml/min. The eluents were monitored at 206 nm using 2487 dual wavelength ultra violet detector. The method was developed and validated in terms of stability as per International Conference on Harmonisation and Center for Drug Evaluation and Research guidelines. A linear relationship between peak area and concentration of azelaic acid was observed in a concentration range of 5-400 µg/ml (correlation coefficient, r 2 = 0.998). The method showed acceptable levels of precision (%RSD ≤2), accuracy (>96 % recovery), robustness (<10 % content difference) and stability (>96 % recovery) over varied environmental and laboratory conditions. The method was successfully applied for the determination of azelaic acid, extracted from three different batches of Aziderm ® cream, which yielded a recovery of >97 %, indicated its applicability in routine analysis of azelaic acid in pharmaceutical preparations.

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“…The active agents that lighten skin tone are either natural or synthetic substances, and may act at various levels of melanogenesis. Tyrosinase inhibitors are the most common approach to achieve skin hypo-pigmentation, as this enzyme catalyzes the rate-limiting step of pigmentation [1][2][3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Whitening Agents from Reseda luteola L. and Their Chemical Characterization Using Combination of CPC, UPLC-HRMS and NMR

et al. 2017

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Skin whitening agents occupy an important part of the dermo-cosmetic market nowadays. They are used to treat various skin pigmentation disorders, or simply to obtain a lighter skin tone. The use of traditional skin bleachers (e.g., hydroquinone, corticoids) is now strictly regulated due to their side effects. When considering this and the growing consumers' interest for more natural ingredients, plant extracts can be seen as safe and natural alternatives. In this perspective, in vitro bioassays were undertaken to assess cosmetic potential of Reseda luteola, and particularly its promising whitening activities. A bioguided purification procedure employing centrifugal partition chromatography, Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-HRMS) and NMR was developed to isolate and identify the whitening agents (i.e., luteolin and apigenin) from aerial parts of R. luteola. UPLC-HRMS also enabled the characterization of acetylated luteolin-and apigenin-O-glycosides, which occurrence is reported for the first time in R. luteola.

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Overview of Skin Whitening Agents: Drugs and Cosmetic Products

Cited by 135 publications

References 91 publications

Skin Whitening Cosmetics: Feedback and Challenges in the Development of Natural Skin Lighteners

Skin Whitening Cosmetics: Feedback and Challenges in the Development of Natural Skin Lighteners

A Validated Stability-indicating RP-HPLC Method for Analysis of Azelaic Acid in Pharmaceuticals

Whitening Agents from Reseda luteola L. and Their Chemical Characterization Using Combination of CPC, UPLC-HRMS and NMR

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