Design, characterization, and clinical evaluation of argan oil nanostructured lipid carriers to improve skin hydration.

Given its advantages in skin application (eg, hydration, antiaging, and protection), argan oil could be used in both dermatological and cosmetic formulations. Therefore, the preparation of nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) using argan oil as a liquid lipid is a promising technique, since the former constitute well-established systems for dermal delivery. The aim of this work was to develop a topical formulation of argan oil NLCs to improve skin hydration. Firstly an NLC dispersion was developed and characterized, and afterward an NLC-based hydrogel was prepared. The in vivo evaluation of the suitability of the prepared formulation for the proposed application was assessed in volunteers, by measuring different skin-surface parameters for 1 month. An argan oil NLC-based hydrogel formulation was successfully prepared and characterized. Moreover, the entrapment of the NLCs in the hydrogel net did not affect their colloidal sizes. Additionally, it was observed that this formulation precipitated an increase in skin hydration of healthy volunteers. Therefore, we concluded that the preparation of NLC systems using argan oil as the liquid lipid is a promising strategy, since a synergistic effect on the skin hydration was obtained (ie, NLC occlusion plus argan oil hydration).

Pigment production by filamentous fungi on agro-industrial byproducts: an eco-friendly alternative.

The search for new sources of natural pigments has increased, mainly because of the toxic effects caused by synthetic dyes used in food, pharmaceutical, textile, and cosmetic industries. Fungi provide a readily available alternative source of natural pigments. In this context, the fungi Penicillium chrysogenum IFL1 and IFL2, Fusarium graminearum IFL3, Monascus purpureus NRRL 1992, and Penicillium vasconiae IFL4 were selected as pigments producers. The fungal identification was performed using ITS and part of the ß-tubulin gene sequencing. Almost all fungi were able to grow and produce water-soluble pigments on agro-industrial residues, with the exception of P. vasconiae that produced pigments only on potato dextrose broth. The production of yellow pigments was predominant and the two strains of P. chrysogenum were the largest producers. In addition, the production of pigments and mycotoxins were evaluated in potato dextrose agar using TOF-MS and TOF-MS/MS. Metabolites as roquefortine C, chrysogine were found in both extracts of P. chrysogenum, as well fusarenone X, diacetoxyscirpenol, and neosolaniol in F. graminearum extract. In the M. purpureus extract, the pigments monascorubrin, rubropunctatin, and the mycotoxin citrinin were found. The crude filtrates have potential to be used in the textile industry; nevertheless, additional pigment purification is required for food and pharmaceutical applications.

Production of Proteolytic Enzymes by a Keratin-Degrading Aspergillus niger.

A fungal isolate with capability to grow in keratinous substrate as only source of carbon and nitrogen was identified as Aspergillus niger using the sequencing of the ITS region of the rDNA. This strain produced a slightly acid keratinase and an acid protease during cultivation in feather meal. The peak of keratinolytic activity occurred in 48 h and the maximum proteolytic activity in 96 h. These enzymes were partly characterized as serine protease and aspartic protease, respectively. The effects of feather meal concentration and initial pH on enzyme production were evaluated using a central composite design combined with response surface methodology. The optimal conditions were determined as pH 5.0 for protease and 7.8 for keratinase and 20 g/L of feather meal, showing that both models were predictive. Production of keratinases by A. niger is a less-exploited field that might represent a novel and promising biotechnological application for this microorganism.