IDUB #UniLodz. Czy bakuchiol na pewno nie szkodzi?

It improves the skin condition. It has anti-aging and antibacterial properties. Due to the similar action, but plant origin, it is called "vegan retinol". Bakuchiol, because we are talking about it, is widely used in cosmetology and dermatology. It is considered a substance that does not induce skin irritation and allergies. But is it really safe? Research on bakuchiol has just been undertaken by dr hab. Grażyna Chwatko, prof. UL from the Faculty of Chemistry, University of Lodz.

In the European Union countries, bakuchiol is approved for use in cosmetic products as a safe component. It was even hailed as the cosmetic discovery of the fall/winter 2020 season. However, still little is known about the possible changes that it may undergo in cosmetics and its allergic effect on the skin. There are also no analytical methods allowing for the determination of bakuchiol in specific preparations. 

"Plant retinol" – a wonderful ingredient of cosmetics

Retinol (vitamin A) and its derivatives (retinoids) are organic compounds found, inter alia, in in fish oil, eggs, butter, citrus and green vegetables. They have been widely used in dermatology and cosmetology for years, because they improve the skin condition and give satisfactory results in the fight against its diseases. However, they also have undesirable effects - roughness, dryness and peeling skin. In addition, when used in high therapeutic doses in pregnant women, they have teratogenic properties (they may cause defects in the development of the foetus). 

Bakuchiol, on the other hand, has recently been used in cosmetology as a replacement for retinol. It has similar healing properties – it prevents skin discoloration, acne lesions and wrinkles, and it supports the maintenance of the original consistency of the preparations – but it has almost no side effects. 

Dr hab. Grażyna Chwatko, prof. UL explains:

Bakuchiol is obtained from the medicinal plant Psoralea corylifolia L., which can be found in India, China, and also in the countries of Southeast Asia. It is used in Chinese and Indian folk medicine.

Cosmetics containing bakuchiol are commonly believed to be hypoallergenic and are marketed as such. 

And yet is it harmful?

Among the few scientific reports on bakuchiol, there are only two papers documenting its allergic effect. 

The first, from 2019, describes the case of a 33-year-old woman who complained for a year of itching and skin lesions on both eyelids and around the mouth and neck. She associated the ailments with the diet, not cosmetics, as she used only hypoallergenic products intended for sensitive skin. Detailed tests have shown, however, that the food was not the sensitizing factor, but it was bakuchiol that was present in the applied cosmetic. 

The second study concerns a 23-year-old female patient with skin lesions on her eyelids after applying an anti-wrinkle cream around her eyes. Research has shown that bakuchiol, which is an ingredient of the cosmetic, was the only allergenic factor. It is worth noting that in parallel, the authors of this study conducted cream tests on a control group of ten volunteers in whom no skin changes were observed. 

Innovative methods of bakuchiol determination in cosmetics

The aim of the project, implemented by prof. Grażyna Chwatko, as part of the 2nd edition of the #UniLodz IDUB grants, is to investigate whether and what changes, which may affect the skin, bakuchiol is subject to in commercially available products.

Dr hab. Grażyna Chwatko, prof. UL explains:

I would like to develop new, sensitive, selective and fast methods of chromatographic determination of bakuchiol in cosmetics. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is a commonly used technique in analytical laboratories. It allows for the separation of components of complex samples, e.g., cosmetics, and the determination of the content of selected substances, e.g., bakuchiol. In analytical methods, it is important to adapt the test sample to the analytical technique. Creams have the consistency of an emulsion and in this form they cannot be used in the chromatograph. Therefore, I will use the extraction of creams with solvents (acetonitrile, methanol, dichloromethane, chloroform, ethyl acetate), thanks to which bakuchiol transforms into the liquid phase and is analysed in this form.

And she adds:

The developed method will make it possible to track its content in the products, which are already available on the market and to determine the short- and long-term stability of this compound in cosmetics. I also want to check how it behaves in various conditions - whether it remains unchanged or whether it undergoes changes that can affect our skin, inducing allergic reactions.

A new method of controlling cosmetics

The obtained results will be a valuable source of information for people who use cosmetics and for companies producing preparations containing bakuchiol. The developed analytical tool, i.e., the new chromatographic method, will also allow to control the quality of products that appear on the market. Laboratories for the quality control of cosmetic companies will be able to use it, as well as laboratories of the State Sanitary Inspection and the Trade Inspection, which in Poland supervise the production and marketing of cosmetic products.

University of Lodz IDUB grants

The Excellence Initiative – Research University – grant competitions as part of which the University of Lodz funds research ideas of its scientists and doctoral students. By supporting them in conducting high quality research, the university implements a strategy of striving for research excellence in all fields and disciplines. The competitions also serve the purpose of internationalisation – developing and strengthening the university's cooperation with international researchers. As part of grants addressed to scientists from outside the university, experienced and young researchers join the team of the University of Lodz. This favours the fusion of experiences and increasing the university's scientific potential, supports networking and employee mobility. 

The grants are financed as part of the subsidy increased by 2% for the universities that joined the IDUB competition in 2019. University of Lodz will receive additional funding for research until 2026. Internal grant competitions have been implemented since 2020.

Currently, in the 2nd edition, over PLN 3 million was used to finance young, experienced researchers and doctoral students in such grant competitions as: UL IDUB "Grants for young and experienced researchers" and "Doctoral research grants".

Source: dr hab. Grażyna Chwatko, prof. UL, Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Lodz
Edit: Iwona Ptaszek-Zielińska, Promotion Centre of the University of Lodz