Myrcene exhibits protective effect against UVB-induced photoaging

In this study, researchers from Kyung Hee University in South Korea investigated the protective effects of a compound called myrcene on UVB-irradiated human dermal fibroblasts. The results of their study were published in The American Journal of Chinese Medicine.

• Myrcene is an aromatic volatile compound found in the essential oil of several plants. It is commercially well-known as a food flavoring and used as a fragrance for soaps and detergents.
• Due to the growing interest in natural anti-photoaging products, the researchers decided to investigate the potential of myrcene in protecting skin cells against damage caused by UVB rays.
• The researchers used human dermal fibroblasts (NHDFs) subjected to 144 Joules per square centimeter (J/cm²) of UVB radiation for their experiments.
• They examined the expression of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1), MMP-3, interleukin-6 (IL-6), transforming growth factor (TGF-B1), and type I procollagen to measure the protective effects of myrcene.
• The researchers reported that myrcene decreased the production of ROS, MMP-1, MMP-3 and IL-6.
• On the other hand, it increased the secretion of TGF-B1 and type I procollagen by human skin cells.
• Treatment with 0.1-10 microMolar (uM) myrcene also dramatically reduced the activation of MAPK-related signaling molecules.

Based on these results, the researchers concluded that myrcene has a protective effect against UVB-induced skin photoaging and can potentially be used in the skincare industry.

Journal Reference:

Hwang E, Ngo HTT, Park B, Seo SA, Yang JE, Yi T-H. MYRCENE, AN AROMATIC VOLATILE COMPOUND, AMELIORATES HUMAN SKIN EXTRINSIC AGING VIA REGULATION OF MMPS PRODUCTION. The American Journal of Chinese Medicine. 2017;45(05):1113–1124. DOI: 10.1142/s0192415x17500604