Vitreoscilla filiformis Extract for Topical Skin Care: A Review.

The term probiotic has been defined by experts as live microorganisms, which when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host. Probiotics are, thus, by definition, live microorganisms, and the viability of probiotics is a prerequisite for certain benefits, such as the release of metabolites at the site or adhesion properties, for example. However, some semi-active or non-replicative bacterial preparations may retain a similar activity to the live forms. On cosmetic, lysates or fractions are generally used. Topically applied Vitreoscilla filiformis extract has shown to have some similar biological activity of probiotics in the gut, for example, regulating immunity by optimisation of regulatory cell function, protecting against infection, and helping skin barrier function for better recovery and resistance. Due to their mode of action and efficacy, V. filiformis extract (lysate including membrane and cytosol) may be considered as non-replicative probiotic fractions, and this review article presents all its properties.

MC1R and PTCH gene polymorphism in French patients with basal cell carcinomas.

In this study, we assessed the role of melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) variants and of two patched (PTCH) polymorphisms (c.3944C>T (P1315L), insertion 18 bp IVS1-83) as risk factors for basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in the French population. The population investigated comprised 126 BCC patients who were enrolled on the basis of specific criteria (multiple and/or familial BCC and/or onset before the age of 40 years and/or association with another tumor)--and 151 controls matched for ethnicity, age, and sex. MC1R variants appeared as a moderate risk factor for BCC (odds ratio (OR) for one and two variants, 2.17 [1.28-3.68] and 7.72 [3.42-17.38], respectively), independently of pigmentation characteristics (OR = 2.53 [1.34-4.8]). Interestingly, in addition to the predictable red hair color (RHC) alleles, two non-RHC alleles (V60L and V92M) were also closely associated with BCC risk (OR 3.21 [1.91-5.38] and 2.87 [1.5-5.48], respectively), which differs from the situation in the Celtic population. In addition, the PTCH c.3944C/C genotype was also associated with BCC risk (OR 1.94 [1.2-3.1]), especially in the subgroup of patients with multiple tumors (OR 2.16 [1.3-3.6]). Thus, our data show that MC1R and PTCH variants are associated with BCC risk in the French population. We further suggest that assessing MC1R and PTCH status could be useful, combined with the assessment of clinical risk factors, in identifying high-risk patients to be targeted for prevention or more rigorous surveillance.