Depigmentation of Melanocytes by the Treatment of Extracts from Traditional Chinese Herbs: a Cell Culture Assay

Autor: Shao-Min Zhong, Junyu Zhao, Xuejun Zhu, Shuxia Yang, Ke Wang, Ahn Soo-Mi, Yeon Jae-Ho, Yan Wu
Rok vydání: 2006
Předmět:
Zdroj: Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin. 29:1947-1951
ISSN: 1347-5215
0918-6158
DOI: 10.1248/bpb.29.1947
Popis: Objective: To obtain potential skin whitening agents from traditional Chinese herbs, we tested changes of melanin content in melanocyte cell lines after treatment with extracts of 90 traditional Chinese herbs. Methods: Mouse melanocyte cell lines were used. Depigmentation activity of the herb extracts were first screened in Mel-Ab cells, and then re-evaluated in melan-a cells and co-culture of melan-a and SP-1 cells. Melanin content and cell viability were the two indications for evaluation. Tyrosinase activity and the expression of melanin synthesis related enzymes in cells treated with the herb extracts were also tested. Results: Nine herb extracts were proved to have depigmentation activity similar to or better than that of arbutin and low cytotoxicity to melanocytes. Two of them were more effective in co-cultured melan-a cells. Most of the effective herb extracts inhibited tyrosinase activity and the expression of tyrosinase. Some of them also inhibited tyrosinase related protein-1 and/or tyrosinase related protein-2 in cultured cells. Conclusions: We have found 9 herb extracts to be promising skin whitening agents. Among them, water extract of Galla Chinensis and ethanol extract of Radix Clematidis exhibited higher depigmentation activity and caused lower tyrosinase activity in cell culture assays and are worthy to be further studied.
Databáze: OpenAIRE