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Two bacteria in stomach of fish become factories for moisturizing and anti-aging skin products

NEWS - Scientists using intestines of red seabream (Pagrus major) and blackhead seabream (Acanthopagrus schlegelii) as factories for cosmetics and skincare products. A team of researchers in South Korea used two bacteria, Ruegeria atlantica and Pseudoalteromonas neustonica, that live in the guts of the fish to produce skin moisturizers and anti-aging products.

Two bacteria in stomach of fish become factories for moisturizing and anti-aging skin products

Some of the strangest ingredients in cosmetics and skincare products, like snail slime, have been used for their moisturizing and antioxidant properties. Now, Chung Sub Kim, Hyo-Jong Lee and colleagues from Sungkyunkwan University in Suwon have found an even stranger one to put on your face.

Compounds from molecules made by the bacteria R. atlantica and P. neustonica that live in the guts of P. major and A. schlegelii fish, isolated in cultured cells have skin-brightening and anti-wrinkle properties. Potential ingredients for your future skincare routine.

Many important drugs come from strange places, including antibiotic penicillin, which was discovered after a failed experiment went moldy. The brain cancer drug candidate Marizomib comes from microbes dug up in seabed sediment. Last week, researchers reported the parasitic stomach worm Heligmosomoides polygyrus produces protein that smooths skin.

Two potentially untapped sources of new compounds are gut microbes from red seabream and blackhead seabream, fish found in the western Pacific Ocean. No studies have been done on the compounds they make, despite the microbes being identified in 1992 and 2016, respectively.

The team identified 22 molecules made by the two bacteria and their ability to inhibit the enzymes tyrosinase and collagenase in mouse cells. Tyrosinase is involved in the production of melanin, which causes hyperpigmentation in aging skin, while collagenase breaks down the structural protein collagen, which causes wrinkles.

The bacterial molecules inhibited both enzymes well without damaging the cells. Furthermore, the compounds tested showed no significant antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis at up to 100 μM. These results indicate that compound can be developed into a cosmetic with anti-wrinkle and skin lightening effects.

Original research

Jonghwan Kim, Su Jung Hwang, Gyu Sung Lee, Ju Ryeong Lee, Hye In An, Hong Sik Im, Minji Kim, Sang-Seob Lee, Hyo-Jong Lee, and Chung Sub Kim. Collagenase and Tyrosinase Inhibitory Compounds from Fish Gut Bacteria Ruegeria atlantica and Pseudoalteromonas neustonica. ACS Omega 2024 9 (32), 34259-34267, DOI:10.1021/acsomega.3c09585

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