Lyotropic Liquid Crystals for Damaged Hair and Other Topics: Literature Findings

By: Charlie Fox, Independent Consultant

Posted: July 30, 2009, from the August 2009 issue of Cosmetics & Toiletries.

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CoQ₁₀ was reported to reduce ROS production and DNA damage triggered by UVA irradiation in human keratinocytes in vitro. Further, CoQ₁₀ was shown to reduce UVA-induced MMPs in cultured human dermal fibroblasts. The authors thus speculated that UVB radiation-induced cytokine production in keratinocytes may be inhibited by CoQ10, resulting in the reduction of MMPs in fibroblasts leading to wrinkle reduction.

In vitro studies showed that UVB-induced IL-6 production of normal human keratinocytes (NHKC) decreased in the presence of CoQ₁₀. Furthermore, MMP-1 production of fibroblasts cultured with the medium containing CoQ₁₀ collected from UVB-irradiated NHKC significantly decreased during 24 h culture. In the clinical trial study, the researchers found that the use of 1% CoQ₁₀ cream for five months reduced the wrinkle score grade, as observed by a dermatologist. The combined results indicate that CoQ₁₀ may inhibit the production of IL-6, which stimulates fibroblasts in the dermis in a paracrine manner, thus up-regulating the production of MMPs and protecting the dermal fiber components from degradation, leading to rejuvenation of wrinkled skin.

Fullerene in cosmetics: Li et al. have published a study indicating that fullerene exhibits the ability to remove free radicals and inhibit the formation of melanin.³ Formulating chemists have developed various ways for fullerene to dissolve in water, which extends its application fields greatly. In this paper, the application of fullerene progresses in cosmetics are introduced in detail.

Flavanone for antiaging skin care: Bio Spectrum Inc. disclosed antiaging compositions containing flavanone compounds and their use for skin care products.⁴ The antiaging composition contains 7-hydroxyflavanone and 7-methoxyflavanone compounds, their derivatives or their mixture. These flavanone compounds stimulated collagen synthesis in fibroblasts and inhibited collagenase activity, thus eliminating wrinkles. The antiaging composition is recommended for products to reduce wrinkles.

Hair and Hair Care
 Lyotropic liquid crystals for damaged hair: The Procter & Gamble Company introduced a shampoo for treating damaged hair comprising an anionic surfactant and a cationic polymer, the combination of which forms lyotropic liquid crystals.⁵ Chemically treated and damaged hair was washed with the shampoo composition consisting of: 5–50% w/w anionic surfactant, water, and 0.025–5% w/w synthetic cationic polymer with a cationic charge of 2–7 meq/gm, wherein the synthetic cationic polymer forms lyotropic liquid crystals upon combination with the anionic surfactant and water. The composition was then rinsed from the hair and researchers found that, after the treatment, the surface energy of the hair was reduced, compared with its surface energy prior to the treatment. An example of the shampoo is shown in Formula 1.