KINGSPORT, Tenn.Eastman Chemical Co. released efficacy results for its NutriLayer ingredient, showing creams that contain the rice bran oil-based compound can reduce the appearance of wrinkles by 50 percent and limit free radicals in the viable epidermis by up to 45 percent. The antioxidant ingredient provides a combination of squalene, mixed phytosterols, tocopherols and tocotrienols.

Eastman (www.eastman.com) conducted its tests using the MatTek Epiderm skin model to determine the amount of radical oxygen species (ROS) neutralized by NutriLayer. The skin model was incubated with dihydrohodamine (DHR), rinsed and coated with a NutriLayer-based cream; the model was then irradiated with UVA or UVB to general ROS. A cream containing 5 percent NutriLayer quenched between 35 and 50 percent of the ROS formed in the granular, spinous and basal layers of the epidermis.

In addition, the company conducted efficacy studies in female volunteers. In a one-week, single blind, placebo-controlled study, 39 women used a 5-percent NutriLayer, 1-percent NutriLayer or placebo cream twice daily. Photos at studys end showed reduced wrinkle appearance. A follow-up 12-week study using photo-analysis to quantify wrinkles and found after only four weeks, the 1-percent formulation showed up to 50-percent reduction in visible wrinkles.

NutriLayer moisturizing cream studies provide tangible quantitative evidence for the reduction in wrinkle appearance and supports the perception of the participants that their skin looks vibrant and more youthful, said Nancy Kinkade, technical associate, excipients business unit, Eastman. Combining the hydrating effect of this natural ingredient with its ability to quench free radicals in the viable epidermis makes this a powerful ingredient for cosmetic products designed to reduce the visible signs of aging today and prolong the youthful appearance tomorrow.