Depth profiling of epidermal hydration inducing improvement of skin roughness and elasticity: in vivo study by confocal Raman spectroscopy.

INTRODUCTION: Skin hydration in the stratum corneum plays an important role in skin condition, and skin efficacy properties are influenced by its hydration level. However, few studies have identified the correlation between changes in skin hydration content and skin characteristics by skin depth level. AIMS: This study aims to determine how changes in skin hydration at specific depth levels affect skin condition by long-term tracking changes in hydration of stratum corneum and viable epidermis after usage of moisturizer. METHODS: Ten volunteers were recruited and subjected to in vivo confocal Raman spectroscopy to perform water content profiling at skin depths of up to 52 µm. Mechanical properties of skin were measured using Cutometer and Antera 3D. Skin-elasticity and roughness values observed before and after 15 days of moisturizing emulsion use were compared to demonstrate the correlation between observed changes in skin efficacy parameters and skin water content at specific depths. RESULTS: Significant increase in relative water content at specific depths was observed in this study. Among mechanical properties of skin, only R4, R6, and R8 parameters demonstrated significant changes. Additionally, rates of change in values of the R6 and R8 parameters revealed a high correlation with water content changes at viable epidermis depths below the stratum corneum. On the other hand, skin roughness parameter showed a correlation with water content changes at the outermost layer of stratum corneum. CONCLUSION: Results of this study indicate that skin elasticity is influenced by its hydration level at viable epidermis depths and skin roughness at stratum corneum each. This suggests that monitoring depth profiles of water content using in vivo confocal Raman spectroscopy provides a breakthrough in tracking the skin efficacy effect of topically applied substances.

In silico prediction of the full United Nations Globally Harmonized System eye irritation categories of liquid chemicals by IATA-like bottom-up approach of random forest method.

As an alternative to in vivo Draize rabbit eye irritation test, this study aimed to construct an in silico model to predict the complete United Nations (UN) Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for classification and labeling of chemicals for eye irritation category [eye damage (Category 1), irritating to eye (Category 2) and nonirritating (No category)] of liquid chemicals with Integrated approaches to testing and assessment (IATA)-like two-stage random forest approach. Liquid chemicals (n = 219) with 34 physicochemical descriptors and quality in vivo data were collected with no missing values. Seven machine learning algorithms (Naive Bayes, Logistic Regression, First Large Margin, Neural Net, Random Forest (RF), Gradient Boosted Tree, and Support Vector Machine) were examined for the ternary categorization of eye irritation potential at a single run through 10-fold cross-validation. RF, which performed best, was further improved by applying the 'Bottom-up approach' concept of IATA, namely, separating No category first, and discriminating Category 1 from 2, thereafter. The best performing training dataset achieved an overall accuracy of 73% and the correct prediction for Category 1, 2, and No category was 80%, 50%, and 77%, respectively for the test dataset. This prediction model was further validated with an external dataset of 28 chemicals, for which an overall accuracy of 71% was achieved.

In vivo determination of the Infrared-A protection factor on human skin.

BACKGROUND: Chronic exposure to infrared A (IR-A) irradiation causes photoaging. However, daily or acute exposure to IR-A rarely induces erythema or pigmentation. Thus, evaluation of the physiological changes taking place on the skin surface is insufficient for clinical investigations. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We fabricated a novel device to obtain the IR-A protection factor (IPF) on human skin. This device consists of an artificial light source that mimics the actual IR-A intensity of sunlight, and a spectrophotometer to measure the spectral reflectance on the skin surface. The IPF can be determined by measuring the difference in spectral reflectance on the skin before and after the use of products and can be verified by the statistical criterion. A validation study was performed using different light intensities and two experimenters. Finally, we monitored the IPF on 12 commercial cosmetics. RESULTS: After considering the IPF and L*-values, we selected the optimal sample and performed a validation study. Neither the intensity of IR-A irradiation or the experimenters significantly affected the IPF. 12 commercial products exhibited their own IPF values and were verified by statistical criteria, with one exception. CONCLUSION: The present IPF evaluation method was concluded to be robust and reliable. This method is simple and safe for the subjects, and could be helpful for the development of IR-A protection products and the confirmation of product performances.

Spermidine-induced recovery of human dermal structure and barrier function by skin microbiome.

An unbalanced microbial ecosystem on the human skin is closely related to skin diseases and has been associated with inflammation and immune responses. However, little is known about the role of the skin microbiome on skin aging. Here, we report that the Streptococcus species improved the skin structure and barrier function, thereby contributing to anti-aging. Metagenomic analyses showed the abundance of Streptococcus in younger individuals or those having more elastic skin. Particularly, we isolated Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus infantis, and Streptococcus thermophilus from face of young individuals. Treatment with secretions of S. pneumoniae and S. infantis induced the expression of genes associated with the formation of skin structure and the skin barrier function in human skin cells. The application of culture supernatant including Streptococcal secretions on human skin showed marked improvements on skin phenotypes such as elasticity, hydration, and desquamation. Gene Ontology analysis revealed overlaps in spermidine biosynthetic and glycogen biosynthetic processes. Streptococcus-secreted spermidine contributed to the recovery of skin structure and barrier function through the upregulation of collagen and lipid synthesis in aged cells. Overall, our data suggest the role of skin microbiome into anti-aging and clinical applications.

A novel in vivo test method for evaluating the infrared radiation protection provided by sunscreen products.

BACKGROUND: Infrared radiation (IR) exposure generates reactive oxygen species and induces matrix metalloproteinase-1 expression in human skin. Moreover, while not as acute as ultraviolet radiation, repeated infrared irradiation can result in the photoaging of skin. Broad-spectrum sunscreens can protect skin from IR, but no human in vivo test methods for the evaluation of sunscreens' IR protection effect have been developed. We aimed to develop such a method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included 155 Korean subjects in our three-part clinical study. The IR reflectance of subjects' skin was measured using a benchtop model of an IR light source and a reflectance measuring probe. We measured the IR reflectance in relation to skin color and hydration level to set up our experimental conditions. We then calculated the infrared protection factors (IPFs) of cosmetic emulsions as the IR reflectance ratio between cosmetic sunscreen-applied skin and non-sunscreen-applied skin and assessed the relationship between IPFs and the amount of sunscreen ingredients. Finally, this method was validated using several commercial sunscreen cosmetics. RESULTS: Skin color and hydration level did not influence the IR reflectance of subjects' skin. The IPFs of cosmetic sunscreens showed a positive correlation with the amount of inorganic sunscreen ingredients. CONCLUSION: In this study, we developed a simple, fast, and ethically acceptable human in vivo test method for evaluating the IPFs of cosmetic sunscreens.

A novel organogermanium protected atopic dermatitis induced by oxazolone.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the skin that is often associated with other atopic diseases, such as asthma and allergic rhinitis. Although topical steroids have widely been prescribed for patients with AD, skin abnormalities are frequently observed after prolonged steroid treatment. In this study, a novel water-soluble organogermanium compound (Ge-Vit) was prepared because organogermanium is a known INF-gamma inducer. The Ge-Vit treatment decreased the basal TEWL and IgE production and attenuated the disruption of the skin barrier function in a murine model of chronic contact dermatitis. The histological examination further supported the anti-AD activities. These results suggested that Ge-Vit can be a useful drug candidate for treating atopic dermatitis.