Guanjie Biotech has been specializing in natural astaxanthin powder for over 20 years. We ensure that every process step, from raw material to final product, meets the highest quality standards. It has been reported in the literature that astaxanthin, when taken orally and used topically, can indeed fight aging. So let's look at how astaxanthin works as an anti-aging agent. Before we get into the anti-aging mechanism of astaxanthin, let's look at the source of the ingredient, the extraction process, and its main biological activities.
Source, Extraction Process And Biological Activity Of Astaxanthin
Astaxanthin belongs to the antioxidant family of carotenoids, which are fat-soluble red pigments.
•Natural sources of astaxanthin
Natural astaxanthin powder is found naturally in different marine organisms and microorganisms. For example, astaxanthin is found in seafood products such as shrimp, crab and salmon that we usually eat. This is why these seafood products have a red colour when cooked. It is also found in some algae and yeast. For example, it is found in Haematococcus pluvialis, Chlorella zofingiensis, Chlorococcum and Phaffia rhodozyma.
And of these microbiomes, rainwater red algae have the highest astaxanthin content. The dry weight percentage is as high as 3.8 per cent. And among the marine organisms, the red cannabis salmon has the highest astaxanthin content. But the content is also in the range of 26-38mg/kg. This is at the ppm level and nowhere near as high as the astaxanthin content of microbial algae.
• Astaxanthin Extraction Process
Most of the astaxanthin on the market today is of natural origin. The most common source of astaxanthin is from the red algae Rhodococcus pyrenoidus, which has the highest astaxanthin content. Because astaxanthin is fat-soluble, the extraction process involves the use of various solvents and oils. Common solvents include various acids (such as hydrochloric acid) and acetone. Fats and oils include a variety of vegetable fats and oils. Examples include olive oil, grapeseed oil, and soybean oil. There are also extractions using supercritical fluid technology with alcohol and sunflower oil as co-solvents. It is generally possible to extract natural astaxanthin powder in varying solubility from 75% to 90%.
• Structure and biological activity of astaxanthin
The planar structure of astaxanthin is shown below, and you can see that there is a 6-ring structure at each end. And each carries a carboxyl group and a ketone group. In the middle is a long polyene carbon chain. The covalent double bond of the long carbon chain in the middle allows astaxanthin to provide excess electrons to free radicals, so pure astaxanthin powder has a strong free radical capture and antioxidant effect. The carboxyl groups at the ends make it hydrophilic and allow it to span the entire cell membrane structure from extracellular to intracellular.
Regarding antioxidant properties, everyone has called astaxanthin extract powder the king of antioxidants. Its antioxidant mainly terminates the oxidative chain reaction by eliminating single linear oxygen and free radicals. Some studies surface that it is due to the special structure of the ring at the end of astaxanthin. It can cross the cell membrane, so it can eliminate free radicals inside and outside the cell at the same time. Therefore, its antioxidant capacity is 10 times higher than other carotenoids and 100 times higher than vitamin E. Also, because natural astaxanthin powder spans the cell membrane, it can maximize the prevention of lipid oxidation on the cell membrane. Therefore, it is also more effective than the water-soluble antioxidant vitamin C.
• Astaxanthin anti-aging mechanism
Let's take a closer look at the mechanism of action through which astaxanthin 10 powder fights aging.
It has been documented that skin aging is strongly associated with oxidative activities. These oxidative activities include DNA damage and inflammatory responses due to oxidative stress. More production of the metalloproteinase MMP and a decrease in the production of antioxidants in the body. And it is by fighting the damage caused by these oxidative activities that astaxanthin fights aging.
• Relief of oxidative stress on the skin
Free radicals create oxidative stress in the body, which causes subsequent chain reactions in the body. This can be detrimental to both skin and health. Astaxanthin, a strong antioxidant, has been shown in human studies to reduce serum malondialdehyde (MDA for short) when taken at 4mg per day for 4 weeks. MDA is a metabolite of lipid oxidation reaction between oxygen free radicals in the body and unsaturated fatty acids in biological membranes. The level of MDA in the blood signifies the level of oxidative stress.
It has also been shown that natural astaxanthin powder reduces the gene expression of the oxidative stress-responsive enzyme, heme oxygenase (HO-1 for short). HO-1 is a representative enzyme in the regulatory mechanisms of oxidative stress and cellular response to oxidative damage in vivo.
• Inhibition of MMP-1 expression in human fibroblasts
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP for short) are a large family of enzymes. It degrades various collagens in the extracellular matrix in the dermis, so MMP expression is increased. This means that more extracellular collagen is degraded. As a result, it causes the development of wrinkles in the skin as well as sagging of the skin. In an in vitro study on human fibroblasts, astaxanthin with a solubility of 4um-8um was found to be effective in mitigating the activity and gene expression of MMP-1 induced by UV irradiation.
• Mitigating Inflammatory Aging Caused by Cellular Inflammatory Factors
Regarding skin aging, it has been proposed that cellular inflammatory factors are also an important cause of skin cell apoptosis and aging. In addition to alleviating oxidative stress and MMP-1 expression, pure astaxanthin powder has a role in reducing cellular inflammatory factors after UVB exposure. In a human test, supplementation with different solubility levels of astaxanthin followed by UVB irradiation of stratum corneum cells revealed that the higher the solubility level of astaxanthin, the greater the decrease in the levels of the inflammatory factors interleukin IL-1α, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-alpha.
• Results of Human Clinical Trials of Oral and Topical Astaxanthin Applications
In two clinical trials investigating the efficacy of natural astaxanthin powder on human skin, an open-label test without placebo control was conducted on 30 healthy women, and a double-blind test with placebo control was conducted on 36 healthy men. The female testers took 6 mg of astaxanthin orally and applied 2 ml of astaxanthin solution with a solubility of 78.9 μM solution topically every day for 8 weeks. They were tested at two time points week 4 and week 8. The male testers were divided into two groups. One group took 6 mg of astaxanthin orally every day for 6 weeks. The other group took a placebo only.
• Improvement of Crow's Feet
Comparison of changes in crow's feet after taking 6mg of astaxanthin bulk powder orally and applying 2ml of topical astaxanthin cream for 8 weeks.
It was found that among the female testers, there was some improvement in the crow's feet under the eyes after 8 weeks, especially in the deepest part of the wrinkles where there was a significant difference in the width and depth of the wrinkles compared to the very beginning. Significant differences in skin elasticity were seen from the fourth week onwards. In addition to improving wrinkles and skin elasticity, natural astaxanthin powder also reduces the size of localized spots, proving that astaxanthin also has some whitening and lightening effects.
Oral and topical astaxanthin powder bulk, indeed on improvement of wrinkles and skin elasticity or has a certain effect on female consumers light spot whitening also have a certain effect.
Guanjie Biotechnology specializes in the production of natural astaxanthin powder. As a leading manufacturer and supplier of bulk astaxanthin powder in China, we guarantee that every stage, from raw materials to the final product, adheres to the highest quality standards. For inquiries or to purchase bulk astaxanthin powder, please contact us at info@gybiotech.com.
