Inhibitory Effects of Cinnamic Acid on Melanin Biosynthesis in Skin

Cinnamic acid is a wildly distributed phenylpropanoid component naturally occurring in plants, and is mainly found in Cinnamomum cassia BLUME and Panax ginseng. Cinnamic acid was recently reported to exert a tyrosinase inhibitory effect. However, research on melanocytes and animal bodies was not rep...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biological & Pharmaceutical Bulletin 2008/05/01, Vol.31(5), pp.946-948
Main Authors: Kong, Yeon Hee, Jo, Youn Ock, Cho, Chang-Won, Son, Dongwook, Park, Soojin, Rho, Jeonghae, Choi, Sang Yoon
Format: Article
Language:eng ; jpn
Subjects:
Animals
Antioxidants - pharmacology
Blotting, Western
Cell Survival
Cinnamates - pharmacology
cinnamic acid
depigmenting agent
Guinea Pigs
Hyperpigmentation - prevention & control
Intramolecular Oxidoreductases - metabolism
melanin
Melanins - antagonists & inhibitors
Melanins - biosynthesis
Monophenol Monooxygenase - antagonists & inhibitors
Pyrones - pharmacology
Radiation-Protective Agents - pharmacology
Skin - drug effects
Skin - metabolism
Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet
Ultraviolet Rays
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Summary:Cinnamic acid is a wildly distributed phenylpropanoid component naturally occurring in plants, and is mainly found in Cinnamomum cassia BLUME and Panax ginseng. Cinnamic acid was recently reported to exert a tyrosinase inhibitory effect. However, research on melanocytes and animal bodies was not reported until now. In this study, we examined the effects of cinnamic acid on melanin biosynthesis within the melanocytes and brown guinea pigs. Melan-a cells were used to examine the effects of cinnamic acid in the melanocytes. Treatment with 100 ppm of cinnamic acid resulted in a significant reduction of melanin production in the melan-a cells at 29.0%. This compound also exhibited a potent inhibitory effect on tyrosinase activity and reduced tyrosinase expression in the melan-a cells. Moreover, cinnamic acid exhibited depigmenting activity on the UV-B-induced hyperpigmentation of brown guinea pig skin. Our results suggest that cinnamic acid might act as a skin whitening agent via inhibition of tyrosinase activity and expression within melanocytes.
ISSN:0918-6158
1347-5215
DOI:10.1248/bpb.31.946