Logo - Rejuvenal
Ceramide
Skin protection against water loss
Ceramide is present in our outher skin layer, our epidermis, to protect our skin from water loss. It forms a protective barrier. However, because of the use of all kinds of detergents, the skin gets cleaner but also loosses it’s water protecting lipids. A cleaner skin almost always means a dryer skin as well. Applying topical creams only protect very limited, besides the fact that it is hard to apply all over the body. Using Ceramide (combined with squalene in OmegaMatrix) service many times better to protect the dermal layers against dehydration. It is the most effective way to keep the skin moist.
Ceramide is used in SkinMatrix® and SkinPro®.
Detergent-induced epidermal barrier dysfunction and its prevention.
Okuda M, Yoshiike T, Ogawa H.
Department of Dermatology, Juntendo University, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan. okuda.minehiro@kao.co.jp
Various detergents are used as skin cleansing products. In some cases, skin cleanser removes not only dirt but also valuable skin lipids. Therefore, detergents may disrupt epidermal barrier function despite that using of detergents are required for good skin hygiene. Lipid supplements can reverse detergent-induced dysfunction of the skin barrier. Elevated transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and riboflavin penetration in 5% SLS-treated rat and human skin were reversed by supplementation of monoglyceride (MG), squalene (SQ), cholesterol ester (CE) and pseudo-ceramide (Cer2). MG and Cer2 achieved the best results. MG appears to inhibit elution of intercellular ceramides, since more ceramides remained when the detergent was supplemented with MG. Topical application of Cer2 is not effective for recovery from artificially induced barrier disruption, but supplemented Ceramide into skin supplements has a beneficial effect for prevention of detergent-induced barrier disruption. In conclusion, the prevention of barrier disruption is most important matter for maintaining skin health and barrier function. Therefore, we think that Ceramide-supplemented skin is useful for conservation of skin barrier function.
Role of ceramides in barrier function of healthy and diseased skin.
Am J Clin Dermatol. 2005;6(4):215-23.
Choi MJ, Maibach HI.
Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, California 94143-0989, USA.
Stratum corneum intercellular lipids play an important role in the regulation of skin water barrier homeostasis and water-holding capacity. Modification of intercellular lipid organization and composition may impair these properties. Patients with skin diseases such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, contact dermatitis, and some genetic disorders have diminished skin barrier function. Lipid composition in diseased skin is characterized by decreased levels of ceramide and altered ceramide profiles. To clarify mechanisms underlying ceramides as a causative factor of skin disease, investigators have examined the activity of enzymes in the stratum corneum on ceramide production and degradation. The activities of ceramidase, sphingomyelin deacylase, and glucosylceramide deacylase are increased in epidermal atopic dermatitis. Investigators have also compared the expression levels of sphingolipid activator protein in the epidermis of normal and diseased skin. A decreased level of prosaposin has been identified in both atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. These results indicate that decreased ceramide level is a major etiologic factor in skin diseases. Hence, topical skin lipid supplementation may provide opportunities for controlling ceramide deficiency and improving skin condition.
Ceramides and skin function.
Am J Clin Dermatol. 2003;4(2):107-29.
Coderch L, López O, de la Maza A, Parra JL.
Instituto de Investigaciones Químicas y Ambientales de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. lcnesl@cid.csic.es
Ceramides are the major lipid constituent of lamellar sheets present in the intercellular spaces of the stratum corneum. These lamellar sheets are thought to provide the barrier property of the epidermis. It is generally accepted that the intercellular lipid domain is composed of approximately equimolar concentrations of free fatty acids, cholesterol, and ceramides. Ceramides are a structurally heterogeneous and complex group of sphingolipids containing derivatives of sphingosine bases in amide linkage with a variety of fatty acids. Differences in chain length, type and extent of hydroxylation, saturation etc. are responsible for the heterogeneity of the epidermal sphingolipids. It is well known that ceramides play an essential role in structuring and maintaining the water permeability barrier function of the skin. In conjunction with the other stratum corneum lipids, they form ordered structures. An essential factor is the physical state of the lipid chains in the nonpolar regions of the bilayers. The stratum corneum intercellular lipid lamellae, the aliphatic chains in the ceramides and the fatty acids are mostly straight long-chain saturated compounds with a high melting point and a small polar head group. This means that at physiological temperatures, the lipid chains are mostly in a solid crystalline or gel state, which exhibits low lateral diffusional properties and is less permeable than the state of liquid crystalline membranes, which are present at higher temperatures. The link between skin disorders and changes in barrier lipid composition, especially in ceramides, is difficult to prove because of the many variables involved. However, most skin disorders that have a diminished barrier function present a decrease in total ceramide content with some differences in the ceramide pattern.
Formulations containing lipids identical to those in skin and, in particular, some ceramide supplementation could improve disturbed skin conditions.
Incomplete lipid mixtures yield abnormal lamellar body contents, and disorder intercellular lamellae, whereas complete lipid mixtures result in normal lamellar bodies and intercellular bilayers. The utilization of physiological lipids according to these parameters have potential as new forms of topical therapy for dermatoses. An alternative strategy to improving barrier function by topical application of the various mature lipid species is to enhance the natural lipid-synthetic capability of the epidermis through the topical delivery of lipid precursors.
Evaluation of skin-moisturizing effects of oral or percutaneous use of plant ceramides
Asai S, Miyachi H. Rinsho Byori. 2007 Mar;55(3):209-15. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, Isehara.
This study was undertaken to evaluate the assay performance of two methods for measuring the water-holding capacity of the skin: Skicon-200 and Tewameter which determine the water content in the stratum corneum and transepidermal water loss, respectively. Based on these findings, we studied the effects of newly developed skin moisturizers made of plant ceramides. The within-run as well as day-to-day reproducibility of the methods were both satisfactory.
When rice-derived NIPPN ceramide RC was used topically for 3 weeks by 23 healthy volunteers, the water content in the stratum corneum of the leg was significantly increased to 141% of the baseline value in comparison with that after placebo use (111%) (p < 0.05), and the transepidermal water-loss was significantly suppressed to 23% of the baseline in comparison with that after placebo use (39%) (p < 0.01).
When 20 mg or 40 mg/day of corn-derived NIPPN ceramide CP was given orally for 3 weeks, the water content in the stratum corneum of the leg was significantly increased to 290% and 394% of the baseline value, respectively, in comparison with that after placebo administration (141%) (p <0.05), and the transepidermal water loss was suppressed to 33 and 14% (p < 0.05) of the baseline values, respectively, in comparison with that after placebo administration (69%). These data by Skicon-200 and Tewameter suggest that the two plant ceramides are promising as skin-moisturizing agents not only for topical use but also for oral use.
Studie1