Incorporation of ceramide 3B in dermatocosmetic emulsions: effect on the transepidermal water loss of sodium lauryl sulphate-damaged skin

Background In previous work we reported on the efficacy of cosmetic body lo tions enriched with skin-identical lipids to reduce the transepidermal wate r loss (TEWL) of ageing and sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS)-damaged skin. The observations made depended on the experimental design and clearly raised th e question of the importance of the galenic formulation of skin ceramide-co ntaining products. Objectives The aim of the present work was to study the different galenic f orms in which ceramide 3B (0.2% w/v) can be incorporated into common o/w em ulsions. In addition, we investigated whether supplementation of skin care products with ceramide 3B enriched with penetration enhancers and coemulsif iers could exert a beneficial effect on barrier function, done by measuring their effects on the TEWL of SLS-induced scaly skin. Results We found that the technique of incorporating ceramide 3B into the o /w emulsions was important for their final stability. However, no additiona l positive effect on the TEWL values of SLS-damaged skin could be observed when the efficacy of the ceramide-containing emulsions was compared with th at of proper controls. Conclusions Although suitable galenic formulas were developed, no positive effect on TEWL could be observed when ceramide 3B was added in a final conc entration of 0.2% (w/v) to different o/w emulsions and applied to SLS-damag ed skin.