In what they have termed a ‘pioneering study’ the research team says that for the first time, they developed and revealed the effects of water-in-oil (W/O) cream containing a Muscat hamburg grape black seed extract in human facial skin.
By evaluating the effects of stable W/O emulsion containing 2% grape seed extract on human cheek skin in comparison with the placebo, the scientists found that it could improve a number of skin conditions such as hyper-pigmentation, premature ageing, and acne.
Beneficial
“From our overall data, it can be concluded that the antioxidant-rich formulation is beneficial for its safe use as natural skin whitening (i.e. decrease melanin content), moisturizer (i.e. increase skin moisture content) and as a potential anti-ageing (i.e. increase skin elasticity) agent,” says the researchers.
“This active and stable formulation could also be able to decrease erythema effects and skin sebum content, without causing any skin sensitivity.”
These properties mean that the cream could be beneficial for diminishing skin redness, for example due to allergies or rosacea, and acne vulgaris, a common human skin condition among worldwide populations.
Vitis vinifera Muscat hamburg (Vitaceae) is a blue-black grape variety which has been consumed and used in traditional medicine for centuries.
Compared to other grapes, it records one of the greatest amounts of polyphenols and displays potent antioxidant activities, which make it a great candidate for its exploitation in the development of stable cream emulsions destined to improve the skin appearance.
Testing
In their study, the scientists topically tested the 2% formulation and the placebo during a winter period in young adult and healthy Pakistani male volunteers for 8 weeks.
The subjects were instructed to use the placebo and the formulation on their right and left cheek skin, respectively, twice a day.
Non-invasive measurements were then carried out on these skin areas every week to assess any effects produced on melanin, elasticity and sebum.
“Significant differences were found between the placebo and the formulation in terms of their respective skin effects elicited on melanin, elasticity and sebum content,” states the study.
“Nevertheless, placebo and formulation exerted similar effects on skin erythema and moisture contents. Importantly, no skin hypersensitivity cases were reported during the whole course of the study.”
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Sharif, A., Akhtar, N., Khan, M. S., Menaa, A., Menaa, B., Khan, B. A. and Menaa, F. (2015), Formulation and evaluation on human skin of a water-in-oil emulsion containing Muscat hamburg black grape seed extract. International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 37: 253–258. doi: 10.1111/ics.12184