12 replies to this topic

[jsmithson]

Yo!

Go to pubmed and search for 'nobiletin sebum'. You'll find a paper that talks about nobiletin which is a chemical that comes from a Japanese citrus fruit. It has been discovered that this chemical reduces sebum output - just like isotretinoin - but appears to not have some of the same side effects (it's a completely different chemical and has a different method of action to isotretinoin). This is an animal study so it isn't possible to check all the side effects but it's still promising news.

This paper is 2 years old. There are no products yet that have this ingredient in it in any significant quantity. It may just be a matter of time...

[Mr. Crab]

Thanks for posting that.

Here's more info on it to anyone who is interested.

Nobiletin

Why don't they start producing this? Maybe you can get the stuff by just eating lemon peels? Lol.

[bryan]

My wild guess is that the stuff is probably available in only very small quantities in citrus fruits, and producing it that way (from natural sources) is probably cost-prohibitive.

[jsmithson]

My wild guess is that the stuff is probably available in only very small quantities in citrus fruits, and producing it that way (from natural sources) is probably cost-prohibitive.

I found a company that sells it in powder form by the kilo at $1000 per kilo. In the study paper they were using it at 2% concentration. Even at that cost, it compares well to standard acne cream like BP (the cost of the raw material is probably a few dollars per 30 ml container).

I'm not sure if it's approved for use in humans - that would be the problem.

[ben100604]

Sounds interesting, but you have to bear in mind that the studies have only come up with speculative conclusions.

[radikal]

the japanese paper:
http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v127/n12/abs/5700927a.html
http://sciencelinks.jp/j-east/article/2006...606A0126037.php

the stuff was extracted from shiikuwasa juice; sounds delicious.

[radikal]

googly googly goo;

here's a company (Sana Fela) working on a formulation which includes nobiletin for sebum control purposes:

http://www.sanafela.com/2009/05/prevent-ac...ng-oily-skin-1/

[{DC}]

whats the mechanism of action? Is it an antiandrogen??

[radikal]

I've gotten a reply from Sana Fela stating that they're in the final testing stages. Their email server bounces all messages and their web form is also broken right now, hopefully they'll fix it soon.

I tried various yellow pages sites for Orange County and failed to pull any listing, maybe someone residing in OC can help!

[radikal]

whats the mechanism of action? Is it an antiandrogen??

Apparently it directly inhibits sebaceous gland activity, just like Accutane (13-cisRA); so no, I don't think it's an anti-androgen.

"Acne vulgaris is characterized by excess sebum production, and apart from all-trans retinoic acid (atRA) or 13-cis retinoic acid (13-cisRA), there are few effective agents for acne therapy that directly suppresses sebaceous lipogenesis. In this study, we demonstrated that topical application of a citrus polymethoxy flavonoid, nobiletin, to hamster auricles decreased skin surface triacylglycerols (TG) level and the size of sebaceous glands along with inhibition of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT)-dependent TG synthesis and sebocyte proliferation. The inhibitory actions were similar to that observed with atRA and 13-cisRA in hamster sebocytes"

[HereComesTheSun:)]

so this seems like a much lower level accutane.. sort of..
has anyone used this?

[databased]

whats the mechanism of action? Is it an antiandrogen??

inhibition of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT)-dependent triacylglycerols (TG) synthesis

which is interesting since it is believed that niacin inhibits DGAT2 (at least in the liver).

Likewise, this suggests another pathway for zinc to influence acne, since a zinc molecule also inhibits DGAT.

If true, then a good reason to not ever eat Maitake mushrooms (and yet another way that switching to a "healthy" diet can make your acne worse).

And, for something to really put on your Christmas list, how about a drug that cures obesity and acne at the same time! Coming soon, like so many things... :-(.

[radikal]

Post removed by myself due to cross-posting rules enforced by moderator(s). Now under its own thread in "Oily skin" subforum, "Anti-sebum cream with Nobiletin as active ingredient".

Edited by radikal, 08 December 2009 - 06:06 PM.