Shiitake mushroom has been recognised throughout history for its youth-promoting benefits, even being acknowledged as an elixir of life.
In terms of its application in skin care, a shiitake mushroom-based extract has been recently selected to provide rejuvenating and firming effects to the skin of the face, neck and décolleté. More specifically, Actifcol™ advanced botanical ingredient has shown to offer a holistic care of the collagen protein, by helping increase its synthesis, improve its quality, through the PLOD1 gene, and reduce its deterioration process caused by carbamylation. When evaluated on mature skin, it showed to enhance firmness and to achieve a more isotropic skin behaviour, typical of a younger skin.
A young skin is mostly characterised by presenting a proper firmness and elasticity, these being properties mainly preserved by the extracellular matrix collagen and elastin proteins. Type I collagen, in particular, is one of the most abundant proteins in the skin and it is known to be involved in providing tissue structure and strength. With age, a decline in the amount and functionality of collagen is observed, leading to an aged cutaneous complexion.
In order to obtain proper collagen structural and biological functions, several steps from its biosynthesis process have to be taken into account. Specifically, one of the most critical steps correspond to the post-translational modifications (PTMs). These PTMs include the hydroxylation of lysine residues by the enzyme lysyl hydroxylase (LH), which is in turn encoded by the PLOD gene. These hydroxylysines are precursors of the cross-links that help provide mechanical stability and tensile strength for a well-preserved skin.1, 2
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