04.18.24
US Patent No. 11,957,769 B2 (Vijay Krishna, Sanjay Anand, Edward Maytin, Stephen Grobmyer); The Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, has been awarded a US patent for a sunscreen composition that contains polyhydroxy fullerenes (PHF) as a multifunctional active ingredient.
The use of PHF as the active ingredient in sunscreen overcomes the concerns associated with traditional active ingredients in current sunscreen formulations, say the inventors.
Polyhydroxy fullerenes are a water-soluble form of fullerenes.
PHF is a broad-spectrum UV absorber with its critical wavelength of 381 nm and UVA/UVB ratio of 1.6 exceeding the FDA minimum limit of 370 nm and 0.91, respectively. The inventors say they have shown that PHF absorbs UV without generating free radicals and can catalytically neutralize different types of free radicals (superoxide, nitric oxide, etc.), without any change to its molecular structure.
The inventors engineered the PHF molecular structure to further enhance its antioxidant activity. Most importantly, they say PHF represents an effective, multifunctional sunscreen agent that could replace the multiple active ingredients in current sunscreens. This combined UV-absorber and antioxidant is simpler, safer, and more stable than current sunscreen formulations, they assert.
According to the patent, in vitro and in vivo studies support use of PHF as a sunscreen active ingredient.
The invention was made with government support under Army Grant #W81XWH-15-1-0580 awarded by the US Department of Defense; the government has certain rights in the invention, according to the patent literature.
The use of PHF as the active ingredient in sunscreen overcomes the concerns associated with traditional active ingredients in current sunscreen formulations, say the inventors.
Polyhydroxy fullerenes are a water-soluble form of fullerenes.
PHF is a broad-spectrum UV absorber with its critical wavelength of 381 nm and UVA/UVB ratio of 1.6 exceeding the FDA minimum limit of 370 nm and 0.91, respectively. The inventors say they have shown that PHF absorbs UV without generating free radicals and can catalytically neutralize different types of free radicals (superoxide, nitric oxide, etc.), without any change to its molecular structure.
The inventors engineered the PHF molecular structure to further enhance its antioxidant activity. Most importantly, they say PHF represents an effective, multifunctional sunscreen agent that could replace the multiple active ingredients in current sunscreens. This combined UV-absorber and antioxidant is simpler, safer, and more stable than current sunscreen formulations, they assert.
According to the patent, in vitro and in vivo studies support use of PHF as a sunscreen active ingredient.
The invention was made with government support under Army Grant #W81XWH-15-1-0580 awarded by the US Department of Defense; the government has certain rights in the invention, according to the patent literature.