Effect of massage on retinol skin penetration.

Topical administration of active substances may be promoted by optimizing not only the vehicle formulation but also the application protocol. The formulation aspects are widely studied in the literature while a few works are dedicated to the development of application methods. In this context, we studied an application protocol usable as a part of skincare routine by investigating the effect of massage on the skin penetration of retinol. Retinol is a lipophilic molecule widely used as an anti-ageing firming agent in cosmetic formulations. Massage was applied to pig skin explants mounted to Franz diffusion cells after or before the deposit of the retinol-loaded formulation. Thetype of skin massage (roll or rotary type) and its duration were varied.The massage protocol had a significant influence on retinol skin penetration. Due to its highly lipophilic character, retinol accumulated into the stratum corneum but, depending on the massage protocol, a significant retinol concentration was obtained after 4 h in epidermis and dermis layers. Results showed that the roll-type massage was significantly more efficient than the rotary process that exhibited little effect on retinol cutaneous penetration. Such results could be interesting for the development of massage devices in association with cosmetic formulations.

Polymerizable semi-fluorinated gemini surfactants designed for antimicrobial materials.

Introduction of biocide monomers during the process of polymerization is one of promising approaches in the development of new permanent non leaching biocide materials. In this perspective, new polymerizable semi-fluorinated gemini surfactants, with quaternary ammonium groups as polar heads and an acrylic function as the polymerizable moiety, were synthesized and tested to evaluate their surface active properties alongside with their antibacterial and antifungal properties. Four microbial strains, known for their implication in nosocomial infections, were used to perform the study: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger. The biocide efficacy measured by bacterial and fungal growth inhibition expressed as MIC (minimal inhibitory concentration) and MLC (minimal lethal concentration) values was discussed as a function of molecular parameters. As compared to homologue compounds without acrylic part, this study shows that even the introduction of a polymerizable moiety allows to keep remarkable both surfactant and bacteriostatic activities, and allows us to envisage the use of these surfactant monomers to build up advanced biocide materials. Moreover, semi-fluorinated gemini surfactant monomers with an amide connector came out as broad spectrum biocides (against Gram positive and negative bacteria and fungi).

Synthesis and antimicrobial properties of polymerizable quaternary ammoniums.

Introduction of biocide monomers during the process of polymerization is a promising approach in the development of new permanent non leaching biocide materials. Two series of surfactants monomers, with a quaternary ammonium group as polar head and an acrylic function as the polymerizable moiety, were synthesized and tested to evaluate their surface active properties alongside with their antibacterial and antifungal properties. Four microbial strains were used to perform the study: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger. The biocidal efficacy measured by bacterial and fungal growth inhibition expressed as MIC (Minimal Inhibitory Concentration) and MLC (Minimal Lethal Concentration) values was discussed as a function of molecular parameters. All the synthesized surfactant monomers presented bactericidal and fungicidal activities. Increasing the spacer between the acrylic part and the ammonium group has a favourable effect on the MIC and MLC results.

Fabrication of superhydrophobic PDMS surfaces by combining acidic treatment and perfluorinated monolayers.

In this paper, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with a superhydrophobic surface was generated by the combination of an acid corrosion followed by the covalent grafting of a highly fluorinated monolayer. The acid corrosion was performed with H2SO4 or HF, and the more effective was concentrated H2SO4. The resulting surface had a contact angle with water of 135 degrees. All the acid-treated samples were then functionalized by the covalent grafting of triethoxyaminopropylsilane followed by the reaction with semifluorinated acid chlorides, via the formation of an amide bond, or directly by a commercially available highly fluorinated silane, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecyltriethoxysilane, to afford superhydrophobic surfaces (contact angle with water exceeding 160 degrees). The introduction of an amide function in the fluorinated monolayer afforded the best water repellency properties probably due to the organization induced by H-bonding between the surface grafted molecules.