Page 30 - A. Aging

[A. Aging-17]

Evaluation of inflammation, wound healing, and skin

irritation by Dracocephalum moldavica seed oil in vitro

human skin cells and reconstructed human epidermis

Eunsu Song¹, Jaeyoung Choi¹, Sung-Gil Choi², Yun Hee Chang¹, Jinah Hwang¹

¹Food and Nutrition, Myongji University, Yongin 17058, Republic of Korea, ²Department of Food Science and

Technology, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52828, Republic of Korea

Dracocephalum moldavica L. (DM), a perennial herb, has been consumed as alternative medicine or food additive
due to its various functions such as anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects from its bio-active compounds.

Particularly, DM seed oil is rich in ω-3 which may play a critical role in anti-inflammation. Since cosmetic animal
testing has been banned in many countries, the importance of alternative methods to animal testing has emerged,

especially in the cosmetics industry. Therefore, this study was carried out to investigate possibility of DM as
pharmaceutical agent using in vitro alternative testing methods by wound healing assay and skin irritation

assessment on reconstructed human epidermis. DM seed oil suppressed mRNA levels of aging- and inflammatory-
related cytokines such as IL-6, IL-8, and COX-2 in dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, DM seed oil enhanced the

speed of wound healing in two types of skin cells showing different cell migration rate according to cell types. In
skin irritation test on RHE, all doses (0.25-8 %) of DM seed oil increased cell viability compared to positive control.

In conclusion, DM seed oil may be potentially applied to recovery anti-aging cosmetic products as important
ingredient due to its faster wound closure and less skin irritation.