posted on 2024-01-31, 18:07authored byFeng Zhong, Hangwei Lu, Ru Meng, Chunbo Feng, Haidong Jia, Hai-Feng Yang, Feng Wang
Keratin and lipid structures in the stratum corneum (SC)
are closely
related to the SC barrier function. The application of penetration
enhancers (PEs) disrupts the structure of SC, thereby promoting infiltration.
To quantify these PE-induced structural changes in SC, we used confocal
Raman imaging (CRI) and polarized Raman imaging (PRI) to explore the
integrity and continuity of keratin and lipid structures in SC. The
results showed that water is the safest PE and that oleic acid (OA),
sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and low molecular weight protamine (LMWP)
disrupted the ordered structure of keratin, while azone and liposomes
had less of an effect on keratin. Azone, OA, and SDS also led to significant
changes in lipid structure, while LMWP and liposomes had less of an
effect. Establishing this non-invasive and efficient strategy will
provide new insights into transdermal drug delivery and skin health
management.