Efficacy of stratum corneum lipid supplementation on human skin.

Recent studies suggest that supplementing intercellular lipids of the stratum corneum in ageing populations or in people with dry skin can stimulate the functioning of the skin. This work lends support to the reinforcement capacity of two different stratum corneum lipid mixtures (synthetic stratum corneum lipid mixtures, SSCL, and internal wool lipid extracts, IWL) formulated as liposomes on healthy skin of two differently aged groups of individuals. Protection of healthy skin against detergent-induced dermatitis was evaluated. Transepidermal water loss and capacitance were used to evaluate the effect of these formulations in in vivo long-term studies. Increase in water-holding capacity is obtained only when the formulations applied are structured as liposomes. This is slightly more pronounced for aged skin. Subsequent SLS exposure reflected the protection of healthy human skin against detergent-induced dermatitis. Slightly better results were obtained with IWL containing a mixture of natural ceramides than with SSCL with only one ceramide present in the formulation. All these results support the beneficial effects of skin lipid supplementation given their resemblance to the lipids in the stratum corneum both in composition and in the structuring of the formulation.

Influence of cholesterol on liposome fluidity by EPR. Relationship with percutaneous absorption.

The influence of liposome composition on bilayer fluidity and its effect on the percutaneous absorption into the skin were investigated. Liposomes formed with saturated or unsaturated phospholipids (H-PC or PC) with varying amounts of cholesterol were prepared and their penetration behaviour into the stratum corneum was followed up by means of the stripping method. The order and dynamics of the hydrophobic domain of the vesicles were studied using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) methodology. Phospholipid composition and the amount of cholesterol exert a considerable influence on the penetration behaviour of the probe encapsulated in the liposomes. This behaviour is closely related to the fluidity characteristics of these liposomes studied by EPR. Therefore, a penetration mechanism of the vesicles into the skin, based on the incorporation of lipids into the skin lipids and on fluidity behaviour, is suggested.

Effect of internal wool lipid liposomes on skin repair.

Intercellular lipids of the stratum corneum (SC) play a crucial role in keeping an optimal skin barrier function and in regulating the water-holding capacity. Recently, the internal lipids have been extracted from wool fibre. This lipid extract has a composition similar to that of the SC lipids. Two parameters were used to test the effect of topically applied internal wool lipids (IWL), structured as liposomes, on the water barrier functions of disturbed and intact skin: transepidermal water loss and skin capacitance. Liposomes made up of lipids that simulate the composition of the SC were also applied for comparison. The single application of the IWL liposomes on disturbed skin resulted in an accelerated recovery of water barrier functions. Daily application of these liposomes on intact skin for 5 days reinforced the skin barrier and increased the water-holding capacity. The repairing effect of the IWL enhances their suitability in the treatment, prevention and care of skin.

The effect of liposomes on skin barrier structure.

The present work deals with the 'in vivo' stripping technique to evaluate the percutaneous absorption of sodium fluorescein (NaFl) vehiculized in two different liposome preparations formed by phosphatidylcholine (PC) and lipids mimicking the stratum corneum (SC; ceramides, cholesterol, palmitic acid and cholesteryl sulphate), respectively. Furthermore, the possible effect of these vesicles on the SC lipid alkyl chain conformational order were evaluated at different depths of SC by non-invasive biophysical techniques: Corneometer, Tewameter and especially ATR-FTIR. The results of NaFl percutaneous absorption indicate the highest penetration in the case of incorporation in PC liposomes, which could be related to the increase in SC lipid disorder detected by ATR-FTIR, i.e. a decrease in skin barrier function. On the other hand, SC lipid liposomes have been shown to have a higher affinity for SC owing to the high amount of NaFl found in this layer, suggesting a greater reservoir capacity of SC when similar lipid composition formulation is applied. A lipid order increase is observed by infrared spectroscopy, when these types of liposomes are topically applied, resulting in a strong barrier effect. These results could be useful in designing specific liposomal topical applications.