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Key Points
- Because collagen is an important component of young, healthy skin, it is a common ingredient in skin preparations that promise to firm skin and reduce wrinkles. However, rather than applying collagen topically or injecting it into the skin, inducing new collagen production in the skin is being explored as an alternative. In fact, recent studies have found that new techniques, such as injections of Vitamin C and calcium hydroxylapatite and topical Vitamin C application, effectively induce neocollagenesis.
Because collagen is an important component of young, healthy skin, it is a common ingredient in skin preparations that promise to firm skin and reduce wrinkles. However, rather than applying collagen topically or injecting it into the skin, inducing new collagen production in the skin is being explored as an alternative. In fact, recent studies have found that new techniques, such as injections of Vitamin C and calcium hydroxylapatite and topical Vitamin C application, effectively induce neocollagenesis.
VITAMIN C ON TOP
The benefits of vitamin C have been touted for decades, and now, according to a study conducted in Australia, it's been shown to increase collagen production when applied topically.1 Specifically, this study found that anhydrous formulations containing microfine particles of ascorbic acid resulted in neocollagenesis and increased production of cytokeratin when applied to ex vivo human skin. In this study, two formulations of vitamin C preparations were topically applied to human abdominal skin that was freshly excised. After 48 hours of exposure to the vitamin C formulations, the researchers found that both formulations achieved increased production of type I and III collagen and cytokeratin.
One important finding of this study is that ascorbic acid can be stabilized and absorbed percutaneously as microparticles in an anhydrous vehicle. "Most physicians correctly believe that ascorbic acid cannot be stabilized in aqueous formulations. Such formulations are sometimes claimed to be stable, although, as disclosed for aqueous vitamin C, E and ferulic acid formulations disclosed in US patent 7179871, they might lose 6 percent to 16 percent of the ascorbic acid when stored for four weeks at 45° C. The anhydrous formulation used in our study showed no detectable loss of ascorbic acid after being stored at 45° C for 4 weeks," says Geoffrey K. Heber, M.D., lead investigator of the study.
According to Dr. Heber, these study findings enable physicians to have confidence in recommending a stable and efficacious topical ascorbic acid product. "Vitamin C is defined scientifically as 'ascorbic acid.' Although derivatives of ascorbic acid are often used in its place and are sometimes called 'vitamin C,' published studies show these derivatives suffer from disadvantages compared to ascorbic acid. Ascorbyl palmitate is no more stable than ascorbic acid in aqueous solution. Ascorbyl phosphates and glucoside are more polar and would be expected to have lower percutaneous absorption, that of magnesium phosphate having been reported to be less than two percent absorption from a three percent cream 48 hours after application to dermatomed cadaveric human skin. Ascorbyl phosphates contain only approximately 50 percent ascorbate by weight, and ascorbyl tetraisopalmitate contains only 15 percent ascorbate by weight," he adds.
SUNNY SIDE INJECTIONS
When injected, vitamin C demonstrates even greater benefits, according to another study, which evaluated the benefits of vitamin C supplementation on healing in rats.2 This study included 42 healthy rats with ruptured Achilles tendons. Rats were randomized to receive either 1.5 cc vitamin C or 1.5 cc 0.9 percent NaCl. They were injected every tow days. By the third day, angiogenesis was more evident in the rats receiving vitamin C. On the tenth day, the rats receiving vitamin C had significantly more type I collagen production compared to the rats receiving NaCl. After 3 weeks, the rats receiving vitamin C had repair tissue that was "almost in the form of regular dense connective tissue," according to the Turkish researchers who conducted this study.
Additionally, the investigators report, "Mean collagen fiber diameter was considerably higher, and the number of active fibroblasts in the repair tissue was slightly elevated in the vitamin C group during the entire healing process."
COLLAGEN AND CALCIUM HYDROXYLAPATITE
In the quest for neocollagenesis, another studied route is also showing promising results. Physicians from Tulane University Health Sciences Center recently conducted a pilot study to determine whether Radiesse (calcium hydroxylapatite; BioForm Medical Inc., San Mateo, Calif.) can lead to neocollagenesis over time.3 In this study, six dogs received injections lateral to the lumbar spine. They received subdermal injections on one side of the spine and intradermal injections on the other side of the spine. There was only minimal irritation at the injection sites. While all of the injected skin had an increase in collagen over time, the intradermal injections led to a larger increase in collagen than subdermal injections.
