OVERVIEW:
30 years ago, the first synthetic oligopeptide Pal-Gly-His-Lys was proposed as an anti-wrinkle ingredient to very skeptical cosmetic formulating companies. How could the tiny amount of 3 ppm of a synthetic but biomimetic substance in a cream or serum reduce the appearance of wrinkles? Impossible! Except that an increasing number of peptide chemists and biologists soon had to admit that a scientist should never employ the word impossible. Many new, potent but safe peptides were discovered and employed in hundreds of SKUs, with a breakthrough to global acceptance of this concept by the year 2000. Presently, more than 1400 peptides are listed as cosmetic ingredients in the INCI dictionary, thus confirming the “must have” aspect of these active ingredients who have demonstrated their safety, specificity, potency and innovative potential.
After 30 years of this worldwide success, is there still room and drive for innovation, can we still obtain Wow-experience with these molecules? Just 5 amino acids could generate 3.2 million different pentapeptides! We have invited the four major cosmetic peptide experts to show us that indeed the boom is not abating, and novel cosmetic benefits are still achievable in this exciting field. Reversal of muscle loss (to reduce ptosis), regulating pH of scalp, melatonin-like peptides and plant derived cyclic oil-control peptides are just a selection of what is in the pipelines for further cosmetic benefits.
