New melanobreaker strategy for skin whitening

Genes that use signalling pathways are this study’s ideal targets for assessing the efficacy of the main active agents to be developed. In the laboratory, a new brown algae extract has been revealed to us with potential implications for regulating the expression of genes participating in melanogenesis. The results have indeed come to show that the extract is able to inhibit the expression of those genes responsible for melanin synthesis activation, as well as to activate the genes responsible for their degradation. In addition to possessing uncommon properties by virtue of the alga’s iridescence, this extract, called CyWhite, helps to naturally rebalance skin pigmentation

Under the umbrella of skin pigmentation, constitutive pigmentation, which determines every individual’s skin colour, is distinguished from “light-induced” pigmentation, in which supplementary pigmentation mechanisms are triggered in response to sunlight, namely to ultra-violet rays (UV rays). All elements comprising the epidermis are involved in the complex mechanics that control lightinduced and constitutive pigmentation synthesis. Skin is coloured by the presence of melanin. Melanin pigments are produced by melanocytes and are later transferred to keratinocytes in the epidermis. The way in which pigmentation gene expression is regulated depends on how signalling pathways are activated.1 Regulator cells such as keratinocytes and nerve fibres control the production of melanin by melanocytes. The equilibrium of melanin protein synthesis varies according to age and specific individual characteristics as well as environmental factors (pollution, nutrition, stress), which together foster or detract from the skin’s homogeneous appearance and luminosity.2 Environmental factors that overstimulate pigmentation may result in excessive melanin levels, characterised by unsightly darkened blemishes on the skin. The creation of agents that limit excess melanin production and reduce blemishes is therefore of great interest. 

After several years performing research studies, the properties and brightening effects of the brown algae known as Cystoseira tamariscifoliaor “Rainbow wrack” have been revealed. This alga may contribute to natural pigmentation and skin colour homogeneity. When extracted from this alga, a cell concentrate called CyWhite acts specifically upon melanin production as well as on the maturation and degradation of melanosomes containing melanin. Cystoseira tamariscifoliais iridescent, meaning that it may seem to change colour depending on the angle at or light by which it is seen. An accumulation of oil droplets within pouches covered by the alga’s epidermal cells creates this effect. The algae’s iridescence appears to be a response to its environmental limitations; it is exposed to a range of light conditions that vary with the tides and water depth. Iridescence enhances the diffusion of ambient light towards the plant’s chloroplasts. This alga is hand-harvested at a certified Ecocert/Cosmos site where it is grown organically. The year’s new growth is cut by knife at low tide in order to reduce waste and promote regrowth. This is an environmentally responsible approach to algae culture (Fig 1).