Dermal penetration of creatine from a face-care formulation containing creatine, guarana and glycerol is linked to effective antiwrinkle and antisagging efficacy in male subjects

📖 Top 30% JournalDec 14, 2011Journal of cosmetic dermatology

Creatine absorbed through the skin from a face cream with guarana and glycerol is linked to reducing wrinkles and sagging in men

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Abstract

Topical application of creatine significantly reduced sagging cheek intensity and wrinkles after 6 weeks.

Creatine stimulated collagen synthesis in cultured human dermal fibroblasts compared to untreated controls.
Topically applied creatine rapidly penetrated to the dermis in skin experiments.
A formulation containing creatine led to significant improvements in facial topometric features.
Clinical assessments confirmed reductions in crow's feet and under-eye wrinkles.
Creatine may serve as a beneficial ingredient for addressing signs of skin aging.

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BACKGROUND: The dermal extracellular matrix provides stability and structure to the skin. With increasing age, however, its major component collagen is subject to degeneration, resulting in a gradual decline in skin elasticity and progression of wrinkle formation. Previous studies suggest that the reduction in cellular energy contributes to the diminished synthesis of cutaneous collagen during aging.

AIMS: To investigate the potential of topically applied creatine to improve the clinical signs of skin aging by stimulating dermal collagen synthesis in vitro and in vivo.

PATIENTS/METHODS: Penetration experiments were performed with a pig skin ex vivo model. Effects of creatine on dermal collagen gene expression and procollagen synthesis were studied in vitro using cultured fibroblast-populated collagen gels. In a single-center, controlled study, 43 male Caucasians applied a face-care formulation containing creatine, guarana extract, and glycerol to determine its influence on facial topometric features.

RESULTS: Cultured human dermal fibroblasts supplemented with creatine displayed a stimulation of collagen synthesis relative to untreated control cells both on the gene expression and at the protein level. In skin penetration experiments, topically applied creatine rapidly reached the dermis. In addition, topical in vivo application of a creatine-containing formulation for 6 weeks significantly reduced the sagging cheek intensity in the jowl area as compared to baseline. This result was confirmed by clinical live scoring, which also demonstrated a significant reduction in crow's feet wrinkles and wrinkles under the eyes.

CONCLUSIONS: In summary, creatine represents a beneficial active ingredient for topical use in the prevention and treatment of human skin aging.

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