Pharmaceutical and cosmetic use of lipids

Ernesto Hernandez Texas A M University, College Station, Texas, Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic Use of Lipids. 

Lipid nutritional supplements have been in use before the term nutraceutical was coined. Products such as fish oils, shark cartilage, shark liver oil, and vitamins have been in the market since the beginning of the twentieth century. Some of the health claims of these products lacked strict scientific documentation in the past, and their curative properties were mostly anecdotal. However, today there is a better understanding of the biological properties of lipids and their application has extended to combined pharmaceutical and cosmetic fields such as disease prevention and treatment, excipients and coadjuvants, frawi-dermal carriers, and skin emolliency agents. This has led to the development of bioactive cosmetic and pharmaceutical products whose name has recently been coined as cosmeceuticals. 

Oils rich in essential fatty acids have been reported to suppress human granulocyte elastase, a tissue-degenerative enzyme that is released when tissue inflammation occurs (59). Oils rich in essential fatty acids, especially from animal origin, have been reported to suppress inflammation as well. Emu oil, for example, has been reported to have superior moismrizing and cosmetic properties in double-blind studies (60). It has also been reported that emu oil increases the proliferation of cells and the growth of hair follicles in laboratory rats (61). As is the case in pharmaceutical applications, the cosmetic properties of lipids synergistically increase when used in combination with phospholipids. Other oils used in cosmetics such as palm, sesame, safflower, borage, and coconut have been reported to increase the trans-dermal properties when used in combination with emu oil. The blend of ethyl... 

Experimental data together with the fact that resorcinolic lipids are nontoxic to higher animals, for example, they are tolerated by rats with an oral intake of 5g/kg ([204] and Kozubek, unpublished work) has resulted in the application of these compounds, as basic components in pharmaceutical and cosmetic preparations. These preparations were found to be useful in the treatment of mouth and gingival infections, as antifungal fluids, in antiacne and also in hair restoration-lotion preparations [309,312,314]. 

Vesicles are intensely investigated with respect to their use as transportation systems for pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications (207,208). The potential of lipid vesicles is rooted in the notion that natural lipids will be at least partially biocompatible (209). Via conjugation with biological ligands different biomedical functions can be implemented into the vesicle (Fig. 24), including... 

Phospholipids when dispersed in water may exhibit seU-assanbly properties (either as micellar self-assembly aggregates or some larger structures). This may lead to aggregates that are called liposomes or vesicles (Birdi, 2009 Harrison et al., 2014 Nair et al., 2014 Reimhult et al., 2003). Liposomes are structures that are essentially empty lipid cells formed due to the self-assembly characteristics. They are microscopic vesicles or containers formed by the lipid membrane alone. They are widely used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic fields becanse it is possible to insert chemicals inside them. One may also use liposomes to solubilize (inside the hydrophobic part) hydrophobic chemicals (water-insoluble organic compounds) such as oily substances so that they can be dispersed in an aqueous medium by virtue of the hydrophilic properties of the Uposomes (in the alkyl region). 

It might be mentioned here that such phases have been used already for pharmaceutical and cosmetical applications without having detailed structural information regarding the corresponding systems at that time [57]. More recently it has been claimed that cubic phases may play a key role in the fusion process of biological membranes [58, 59] and they are frequently formed by lipids, obtained from membrane extracts. 

Ester synthesis of cholesterol linoleate. Cholesterol fatty acid ester is an important cell membrane lipids and has many applications in cosmetics, pharmaceutical and other industries. Akehoshi et aL(7) reported the ester synthesis of the cholesterol fatty acid ester with native lipase. Synthesis of the cholesterol fatty acid ester was also carried out in water-saturated n-hexane by palmitic acid-modified lipase. As shown in Table III, this system made it possible for the synthesis of the cholesterol fatty acid ester in organic solvents using the modified lipase. 

Lanolin steryl ester determinations Lanolin is the wool grease secreted by the sheep sebaceous glands, and represents a complex mixture of high molecular mass lipids, including fatty acids and alcohols, sterols, hydroxyacids, diols, and aliphatic and steryl esters. Lanolin is widely used in cosmetic and pharmaceutical formulations. The study of minor lipids... 

Cells exploit bilayer structures to create anatomical boimdaries, eg in the case of cell membranes which are composed of lipids, proteins, and carbohydrates. During the early 1960s researchers demonstrated that certain classes of lipids, especially phospholipids, could be used to form protein- and carbohydrate-free model membranes. Methods were developed for the preparation of supported bilayer lipid membranes (1), and it was discovered that dried thin films of phospholipids spontaneously hydrate to yield lipid vesicles (2). Vesicles have since then been used as model systems for fluid interfaces and biomembranes (3). Practical applications involving vesicles are in the area of cosmetics and pharmaceutics. 

Recently, four microbially derived biosurfactants—rhamnolipids, sophoro-lipids, spiculisporic acid and surfactin—are commercially available. Nevertheless, the use of biosurfactants is limited by the cost of production and insufficient experience in applications. However, since there is increasing awareness of water quality and environmental conservation, as well as expanding demand for natural products in cosmetics or in pharmaceutical products, it appears inevitable that high-quality microbially produced biosurfactants will replace the currently used chemical products in many applications outlined above. In addition, in the future chemically or bio-... 

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