Induction of Darier's disease by repeated irradiation by ultraviolet B; protection by sunscreen and topical ascorbic acid

Darier's disease, keratosis follicularis, is frequently aggravated by sun exposure. Although there have been reports of Darier's disease reproduced by repeated exposure to ultraviolet B, little is known about its photo-protection. We artificially induced Darier's disease in a 47-year-old Korean man, and tested the protection afforded by sunscreen and topical ascorbic acid. Complete lesions of Darier's disease arose with repeated exposure of ultraviolet B (2,600 mJ/cm2 for 10 days), and sunscreen and topical ascorbic acid protected against its appearance. This result strongly suggests that sunscreen and ascorbic acid would be very helpful in preventing the aggravation of Darier's disease caused by sun exposure.     

Results of photopatch testing in Rotterdam during a 10-year period

BACKGROUND: Photoallergic contact dermatitis is of importance in a proportion of photodermatoses and can be evaluated through photopatch testing. OBJECTIVES: To conduct a retrospective evaluation of photopatch tests performed in patients with suspected photodermatoses at the clinic at the University Hospital Rotterdam during a 10-year period. METHODS: During the first 5(1/2) years 44 patients were tested with a standard set of 14 allergens, and during the next 4(1/2) years 55 patients were tested with a standard set of 23 allergens. RESULTS: Photocontact reactions were found in 9% and 27% of patients in the two periods, respectively. In the second period, positive reactions were mostly produced by sunscreens. The difference in the percentage of positive photopatch tests was probably caused by the difference in composition of the standard set of allergens (more sunscreens in the second period), this being the only alteration in the test procedure. CONCLUSIONS: The standard set of photoallergens has to be updated periodically. Standardization of the test procedure is needed to compare the test results of different institutions.     

UV filters in sunscreen products--a survey

The contents of 18 permitted chemical UV filters in 75 sunscreen products have been determined to check the compliance of these products with the EU Cosmetic Directive, as well as to generate data for quantitative exposure assessments. 81% of the products were found to contain 14 of the target chemical UV filters. The remaining products contained only the physical UV-filters titanium oxide and zinc oxide, which were not determined in the present study. Maximum content (29.3%) of chemical UV filters was found in a product that contained 6 of the target UV filters. Octyl methoxycinnamate (1.4-4.7%) and butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane (0.4-4.8%) were the most frequently used UV filters, present, respectively, in 49% and 44% of the investigated products. Correlation between declared sun protection factor (SPF) and the contents of chemical UV filters in the respective products was not significant (correlation coefficient 0.5362). The content of UV filters in all products complied with the maximum allowed concentration of these according to EU Cosmetic Directive.     

防晒化妆品中8种常用紫外线吸收剂使用量分析

[目的]研究我国防晒化妆品中紫外线吸收剂的使用量。[方法]统计分析1996-2002年用反相高效液相色谱法测定的2 263份国产和进口防晒化妆品样品中常用的8种紫外线吸收剂的使用量。[结果]4-甲氧基肉桂酸-2- 乙基己酯、4一二甲氨基苯甲酸-2-乙基己酯、水杨酸-2-乙基己酯、3-(4’-甲基亚苄基)-d-I-樟脑、羟苯甲酮、2-苯基苯并咪唑-5-磺酸、1-(4-特丁基苯基)-3-(4-甲氧基苯基)丙烷-1,3-二酮、2-羟基-4-甲氧基二苯甲酮-5-磺酸在防晒化妆品中使用量总体均值分别为(41.5±24.6)mg/g、(41.2±25.2)mg/g、(33.5±16.7)mg/g、(20.4±12.2)mg/g、(20.1±13.8)mg/g、(19.6±10.1)mg/g、(13.8±8.8)mg/g、(11.1±16.1)mg/g,使用量均值年度变化(RSD)分别为6.65%、20.16%、16.56%、17.17%、10.17%、30.53%、14.65%、63.72%。[结论]使用量最大和年度使用量均值变化最小的紫外线吸收剂皆为4-甲氧基肉桂酸-2-乙基己酯,且都在我国规定的限量以内。     

A novel sunscreen agent having antimelanoma activity

A novel series of eight dibenzoylmethane derivatives having both sunscreen and cytotoxic activity has been obtained by derivatizing commercial dibenzoyl methanes. Four human cancer cell lines (MCF 7 (breast), NCI ADR (breast expressing the multidrug resistance phenotype), NCI 460 (lung) and UACC 62 (melanoma)) were used for the cytotoxic assay. Eight among the 19 dibenzoylmethane derivatives showed cytotoxicity against these four cell lines. Absorption spectroscopies revealed that these compounds can be used as sunscreens against UV radiation.     

Primary prevention of skin cancer: a review of sun protection in Australia and internationally

The incidence of skin cancer is increasing worldwide. Protecting the skin from the sun by wearing protective clothing, using a sunscreen with appropriate sun protection factor, wearing a hat, and avoiding the sun are recommended as primary preventive activities by cancer agencies. In this paper the recent data relating to skin cancer primary preventive behaviour in Australia and other countries is reviewed. Comparison of the studies in a table format summarizing the methods, objectives, participants, findings and implications may be obtained from the corresponding author. The sun protection knowledge, attitudes and behaviour patterns observed in Australia are similar in other countries, although Australian studies generally report higher knowledge levels about skin cancer and higher levels of sun protection. The findings suggest that sunscreen is the most frequent method of sun protection used across all age groups, despite recommendations that it should be an adjunct to other forms of protection. While young children's sun protective behaviour is largely influenced by their parents' behaviours, they are still under protected, and sun protective measures such as seeking shade, avoiding the sun and protective clothing need to be emphasized. Adolescents have the lowest skin protection rates of all age groups. Within the adult age range, women and people with sensitive skin were most likely to be using skin protection. However, women were also more likely than men to sunbath deliberately and to use sun-tanning booths. The relationship between skin protection knowledge and attitudes, attitudes towards tanning and skin protection behaviour needs further investigation. Further studies need to include detailed assessments of sunscreen use and application patterns, and future health promotion activities need to focus on sun protection by wearing clothing and seeking shade to avoid increases in the sunburn rates observed to date.