Abstract:

The penetration of β-arbutin in the skin stratum corneum was studied by confocal Raman spectroscopy. This test method obtains the quantity information of penetration depth as well as amount after different application duration, providing a new non-invasive in vivo test method for the skin penetration of β-arbutin. The results show that the stratum corneum thickness of the 5 subjects is（18.05±2.96）μm, and the amount of β-arbutin in the skin increases gradually with duration, while decreases along with the increase of penetration depth after the single use of 15 min and 60 min of the test product. The confocal Raman spectroscopy technique is a novel in vivo test method, with the advantages of non-invasive and rapid detection of target ingredient in the skin. In addition, it measures the accurate skin depth, and provides a new detection method for penetration study of effective ingredients in cosmetics or drugs.

Key words: cosmetics, confocal Raman spectroscopy, β-arbutin;, skin penetration, in vivo methods, non-invasive detection