What is the mechanism of action of the drug glabridin?

What Is Glabridin?

Glabridin is a flavonoid extracted from a precious plant called Glycyrrhiza glabra. Glabridin is known as "whitening gold" for its powerful whitening effect. It can eliminate free radicals and melanin at the bottom of the skin. It is a holy object for skin whitening and anti-aging.

Glycyrrhiza glabra is a plant, and glabridin is a chemical extracted from Glycyrrhiza glabra.

Licorice is actually a familiar ingredient to us. There has always been a saying that "nine herbs in ten prescriptions" and licorice can be found in some classic prescriptions. Licorice has a wide range of effects, but it is probably best known for its soothing effect, but it is not known that its power in whitening is extraordinary.

Licorice glabra has extremely demanding requirements for the growing environment. It is rarely distributed in China and mainly grows on the edge of the desert in Xinjiang. And the content of glabridin in licorice glabra is very small. Generally, it only exists in the roots or stems of Glycyrrhiza glabra, and has a long growth cycle. Only five-year-old Glycyrrhiza glabra has extraction value. The roots of 8-10-year-old Glycyrrhiza glabra will become lignified, and the yield of glabridin will decrease.

The content of glabridin in Glycyrrhiza glabra is extremely low, only 0.08 to 0.35%, which is equivalent to extracting about 90 grams of glabridin from 1 ton of Glycyrrhiza glabra plants. And the extraction process is also very complicated, which leads to its high market price, comparable to "gold".

What Are The Functions Of Glabridin?

As we all know, the biggest opponent of whitening is melanin. There are many reasons for the production of melanin, such as endocrine, lifestyle, eating habits, etc. Moreover, Asian yellow people originally have slightly more melanin. Under the irradiation of ultraviolet rays, they are prone to redness and inflammation at first. Later, due to the activation of inflamed melanocytes, pigmentation and tanning are caused, and spots and freckles will also worsen.

To eliminate melanin, one is to prevent the production of melanin to prevent the skin from darkening; the second is to accelerate the metabolism of the melanin that has been produced to make the skin "white again". General whitening ingredients can only act on a certain link of melanin production. Many products on the market need to compound multiple ingredients to achieve better whitening effects. Licorice as a single whitening ingredient can achieve full-link suppression of black from the source, surface, middle and bottom layers, and has anti-black + anti-oxidation + anti-irritation effects.

The whitening principle of glabridin is to inhibit melanin through four major pathways:

Path 1

Soothing and anti-irritation, intercepting the signal of melanin formation stimulated by external factors such as ultraviolet rays, pressure, pollution, etc. from the source

Path 2

Inhibiting tyrosinase activity in the bottom layer of the skin and blocking melanin synthesis

Path 3

Inhibiting melanin-stimulating hormone in the middle layer of the skin, cutting off the path of melanin transport to the epidermis, so that the skin color cannot darken

Path 4

Promoting the reduction of melanin and resisting oxidative darkening.

Under the joint action of the four pathways, glabridin can achieve the purpose of efficient whitening, repairing skin dullness, redness, acne and acne scars, and returning the skin to its natural delicate and white appearance.

What Is The Application Of Glabridin?

Cosmetic Applications

Glycyrrhizin has excellent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-melanin effects, so it is used as an ingredient in various cosmetics and medical care products (such as creams, lotions, shower gels, etc.). It can be made into whitening creams, and such patented products have already been launched.

In addition, glabridin also has important applications in the medical field. It has the effects of lowering blood pressure and blood lipids, and can suppress appetite to achieve the ideal fat-reducing effect without reducing weight. These characteristics make glabridin also have a certain market demand in the medical field.