The Investigation of the Rabbit and Human Skin Irritation of Herbal Anti-wrinkle Cream

Abstract

Flower extract of Caesalpinia pulcherrima possesses an impressive anti-oxidant activity. In this study, we examined safety of the anti-wrinkle cream containing the flower extract by means of skin irritation tests on rabbit skin (N = 7) and human skin (N = 30). This formulated cream was oil-in-water type containing 0.5% Caesalpenia flower extract. Safety was evaluated based on the Primary Irritation Index (PII). The results showed that in rabbit the cream was safe as the erythema and edema reactions at 24–hr observations were relatively low in rabbit, and somewhat negligible in human. All reactions disappeared at 72-hr observations. In human we found that our 0.5% Caesalpenia cream either with or without Aloe vera extract was safe as only 2 subjects reported slight itching on their skin sites applied with the herbal cream without Aloe vera extract. No rash was observed on any formulation. Since the cream with Aloe vera extract exhibited a somewhat lower irritancy than did the one without Aloe vera, the 0.5% Caesalpenia cream with Aloe vera extract may have a potential for further development for cosmetic products.