SCALP MICROBIOME, A NEW PLAYGROUND FOR COSMETIC INNOVATION
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Presented by: Florence Weisgerber
Introduction
The human skin, including the scalp surface, serves as the body’s first line of defense as well as a host to a myriad of microorganisms, which includes both bacteria and fungi. The application of high-throughput next-generation sequencing and robust computational analysis has led to an in-depth understanding of the scalp microbiome in recent years, providing novel clues on the scalp-related disorders and scalp health. Global studies have revealed that the scalp microbiome is characterized by a rather low bacterial diversity, as compared to the other body sites, and is dominated by Cutibacterium spp., Staphylococcus spp. and Malassezia spp. The scalp microbiome acts as a guardian of hair and scalp quality. Various environmental and intrinsic factors are reported to be linked to the scalp barrier, sebum composition, scalp microbiome disequilibrium, thus it is important to propose adapted scalp cosmetic products. For this purpose, we developed a specific formula designed to act on the scalp and its ecosystem.
Methods: The formula is a serum containing vitamin CG, polysorbate 21 and a complex of 7 pre- and probiotics fractions including Bifidobacterium longum, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, two Lactobacillus extracts and two long polysaccharides and one short sugar. The benefits of this new scalp care were evaluated on two cohorts of 74 healthy adult men and women with different hair and scalp types aged 18-65y old.
First study: open-label, single center study in 41 subjects with sensitive scalp (scalp discomfort score of ≥8 (0-27), defined as the sum of individual symptom scores (0-9) for itching, stinging and warming sensations). Scratching was also assessed. Evaluations were performed immediately after 1st application and at D21, assessing the cosmetic acceptability and efficacy of the product. Transepidermal water loss (TEWL), squalene and squalene peroxide (SQOOH) were assessed at baseline and D21. Tolerance was assessed during the whole study.
Second study: open-label, single center study in 33 subjects (9 Males, 24 Females) during 2 weeks of daily applications of the serum. Microbiome evaluations were performed before and after scalp surface aggression and along the time. Cutibacterium spp., Staphylococcus spp. and Malassezia spp (quantitative) were evaluated by QPCR (region V1-V3 16S rRNA KAPA Biosystems kit with SYBER Green) and amplicon sequencing analysis of bacterial and fungal communities (qualitative) was conducted using Next Generation Sequencing (Amplification V1-V3 on Illumina MiSeq platform).
Results:
Scalp discomfort score and scratching frequency significantly (p<0.0001) improved immediately after the first application of the serum and lasted until the end of the study (D21), as compared to baseline. There was a significant reduction of SQOOH content (-15%) between baseline and D21. Subject satisfaction was high. Tolerance was good.
The scalp surface aggression decreased the bacterial and fungal load and diversity of the scalp microbiota. Application of the serum does not change the recovery of the quantity but promoted a faster recovery of the scalp diversity, when compared to bare scalp after 15 days of applications. Indeed, very interestingly, based on the beta diversity, after 15 days of serum application, the scalp microbiome showed a significant faster and total recovery relative to bare scalp.
Conclusion:
These findings show that for the first time a specifically designed cosmetic formula containing vitamin CG, polysorbate 21 and a combination of 7 pre- and probiotics fractions can bring a quicker and complete recovery of scalp microbiota after aggression and reduce global discomfort and symptoms in subjects with sensitive scalp, and as well as markers of oxidative stress.
These results bring a key milestone in scalp knowledge.
The human skin, including the scalp surface, serves as the body’s first line of defense as well as a host to a myriad of microorganisms, which includes both bacteria and fungi. The application of high-throughput next-generation sequencing and robust computational analysis has led to an in-depth understanding of the scalp microbiome in recent years, providing novel clues on the scalp-related disorders and scalp health. Global studies have revealed that the scalp microbiome is characterized by a rather low bacterial diversity, as compared to the other body sites, and is dominated by Cutibacterium spp., Staphylococcus spp. and Malassezia spp. The scalp microbiome acts as a guardian of hair and scalp quality. Various environmental and intrinsic factors are reported to be linked to the scalp barrier, sebum composition, scalp microbiome disequilibrium, thus it is important to propose adapted scalp cosmetic products. For this purpose, we developed a specific formula designed to act on the scalp and its ecosystem.
Methods: The formula is a serum containing vitamin CG, polysorbate 21 and a complex of 7 pre- and probiotics fractions including Bifidobacterium longum, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, two Lactobacillus extracts and two long polysaccharides and one short sugar. The benefits of this new scalp care were evaluated on two cohorts of 74 healthy adult men and women with different hair and scalp types aged 18-65y old.
First study: open-label, single center study in 41 subjects with sensitive scalp (scalp discomfort score of ≥8 (0-27), defined as the sum of individual symptom scores (0-9) for itching, stinging and warming sensations). Scratching was also assessed. Evaluations were performed immediately after 1st application and at D21, assessing the cosmetic acceptability and efficacy of the product. Transepidermal water loss (TEWL), squalene and squalene peroxide (SQOOH) were assessed at baseline and D21. Tolerance was assessed during the whole study.
Second study: open-label, single center study in 33 subjects (9 Males, 24 Females) during 2 weeks of daily applications of the serum. Microbiome evaluations were performed before and after scalp surface aggression and along the time. Cutibacterium spp., Staphylococcus spp. and Malassezia spp (quantitative) were evaluated by QPCR (region V1-V3 16S rRNA KAPA Biosystems kit with SYBER Green) and amplicon sequencing analysis of bacterial and fungal communities (qualitative) was conducted using Next Generation Sequencing (Amplification V1-V3 on Illumina MiSeq platform).
Results:
Scalp discomfort score and scratching frequency significantly (p<0.0001) improved immediately after the first application of the serum and lasted until the end of the study (D21), as compared to baseline. There was a significant reduction of SQOOH content (-15%) between baseline and D21. Subject satisfaction was high. Tolerance was good.
The scalp surface aggression decreased the bacterial and fungal load and diversity of the scalp microbiota. Application of the serum does not change the recovery of the quantity but promoted a faster recovery of the scalp diversity, when compared to bare scalp after 15 days of applications. Indeed, very interestingly, based on the beta diversity, after 15 days of serum application, the scalp microbiome showed a significant faster and total recovery relative to bare scalp.
Conclusion:
These findings show that for the first time a specifically designed cosmetic formula containing vitamin CG, polysorbate 21 and a combination of 7 pre- and probiotics fractions can bring a quicker and complete recovery of scalp microbiota after aggression and reduce global discomfort and symptoms in subjects with sensitive scalp, and as well as markers of oxidative stress.
These results bring a key milestone in scalp knowledge.