CLAUDIA ZAPPELLI1, ANNALISA TITO2*, MAURA ANGELILLO1, ANTONIO COLANTUONO2, DANILA FALANGA2, ADRIANA DE LUCIA2, VINCENZO FOGLIANO2
*Corresponding author
1. VitaLab srl (Intercos Group) Napoli, Italy
2. Arterra Bioscience SPA, Napoli, Italy

Abstract

Avocado (Persea Americana) consumption has experienced a remarkably fast increase in demand, which inevitably leads to significant waste along the production chain. In recent years, the increased awareness of the environmental impact linked to food loss generated a huge rise in demand for sustainable goods. In this study we evaluated the moisturising effect, and the mechanisms behind it, of an oil-soluble extract from aesthetically imperfect, and thus rejected, avocado fruits cultivated in Sicily. Through in vitro and ex-vivo studies, we demonstrated that this new active ingredient significantly up-regulated proteins with key functions in the maintenance of intracellular water balance. Moreover, we showed that the extract promoted an overall improvement of epidermal barrier function by increasing the synthesis of lipid structures. Finally, clinical studies showed that the extract improved skin hydration and dermal density.

INTRODUCTION
Avocado is a widely appreciated “superfood” thanks to its high content in numerous bioactive compounds including carotenoids, fatty acids, vitamins, flavonoids, and other polyphenol metabolites (1). The increasing awareness of the avocado’s health benefits has led to an incredible global upward trend in avocado demand in the past two decades. Production in non-native countries such as Spain, Portugal, and Italy is on the rise, driven by the impressive increase in avocado demand in Europe. European cultivation, minimizing physical distancing of imports, brings several environmental advantages such as less transportation and less need for inventory storage (2). However, a side effect of a high production rate is the significant amount of wastage that is inevitably produced along the supply chain. Among the causes of food loss, the impact of rigid cosmetic standards in terms of shape, size, and colour of products, plays a major role in the rejection process at the farm level (3). Thus, up-cycling of avocado fruits that do not meet imposed aesthetic standards but still have plenty of bioactive compounds represents a good strategic approach ...