Daylight defence: photoprotection and repair

This multitude of effects will eventually lead to the typical signs of photo-ageing: dryness, redness, wrinkles, rough skin, loss of elasticity, and hyperpigmentation. A standardised extract from the plant Cistus incanus and a novel sphingolipid derivative, salicyloyl phytosphingosine, are two complementary cosmetic ingredients providing potent daylight defence due to effective photoprotection and photorepair mechanisms.

The skin, in its function as a biological barrier for the human body, protects against multiple environmental influences. In particular, sunlight triggers unwanted and deleterious stress in the skin. The worst cases of photo damage manifest themselves as skin cancer. Less severe adverse effects on the skin are erythema, wrinkling, dryness, inflammation, autoimmune reactions and pigment abnormalities. UV light is one factor that, when it is absorbed by the skin, leads to the generation of free radicals, in particular radical oxygen species (ROS). Other environmental factors such as pollution, microorganisms, viruses and chemical substances additionally contribute to the formation of free radicals in human skin. The human body is well equipped to deal with oxidative stress by using antioxidant molecules and enzymes. However, an overproduction of these reactive molecules by extensive sun exposure and other external sources or inadequate scavenging of ROS within the skin results in oxidative damage, eventually manifesting itself on a bio molecular level in lipid peroxidation, protein degradation, enzyme dysfunction and even DNA mutations/breakage. Due to the various external influences that result in ROS formation and as a consequence of the exhaustion of the skin’s internal repair mechanisms, topical application of skin care products containing antioxidants have become common. One of the active ingredients which provides high antioxidant capacity and reduces the oxidative stress that the skin is exposed to every day is Cistus incanus extract. Cistus incanus extract is highly enriched in polyphenols from the pink rock rose and provides protection by reducing the appearance of sunburn cells and neutralising free radicals to combat undesirable effects of sun exposure. Unlike the photoprotection effect of Cistus incanus extract, salicyloyl phytosphingosine promotes partial dermal repair of photoaged skin. Salicyloyl phytosphingosine consists of the naturally occurring skin-identical molecule, phytosphingosine, covalently linked to a salicylic acid moiety. Using semi-quantitative immunohistology assays on photoaged skin biopsies, salicyloyl phytosphingosine has been shown to help repair photoaged skin by increasing dermal collagen levels, reducing MMP expression and supporting structure of the dermal epidermal junction (DEJ).

Photoprotection with Cistus incanus extract