Researchers Synthesize Baby's Vernix Caseosa for Treatment Cream
Posted: March 31, 2009
Researchers at Leiden University have developed a protective cream that possibly can treat patients whose skin has a reduced barrier function. According to the report, Vernix caseosa (VC) is a protective cream that helps the skin grow before and after birth.
At first, the goal of the researchers was to find a treatment for newborn babies; however, they have found the cream to have a number of applications including treatment of dry skin or dermatitis. The team also mentions that the cream could be formulated with other ingredients to serve as a medicinal carriers. Also, they find the cream to have future cosmetic applications.
According to Robert Riβman, one of the researchers in the study, "We haven't yet fathomed all the functions of the cream, but we have demonstrated that its properties are temperature-sensitive. That means that the cream fulfils a number of roles before, during and after birth, just as butter exhibits different characteristics in the oven and on the table."
Riβman and his collegue Joke Bouwstra noticed the beneficial elements of VC and produced a synthetic version of the cream with the same structure and unique properties. According to the report, VC consists of mostly water, but its beneficial properties come from its 10% lipid and 10% corneocyte content.
To create the synthetic cream, the researchers used X-ray diffraction measurements with the DUBBLE beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF). For the coreocytes, they used electron microscopy, yielding their size, shape and water content.