Physiological effects of formulations added with black garlic extract on skin care: Oxidative stress, tyrosinase and elastase activities

We evaluated the physiological effects of formulations added with black garlic extract on skin care. Black garlic was made by spontaneous fermentation for 40 days at 60~70°C and 85~95% RH without any additives. When black garlic extract was added to formulation, the tyrosinase activity was decreased significantly (p<0.05, p<0.01, p<0.001). Base formulation inhibited slightly elastase activity (<5%), while black garlic formulation had about 8-fold higher elastase inhibitory activity (p<0.01). It was observed that formulations, with or without black garlic extract, decreased thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and hydrogen peroxide which were increased by UVB irradiation, although there were no significant differences of these contents between black garlic formulation and base formulation. In conclusion, black garlic formulation had high inhibitory activities for tyrosinase and elastase, suggesting that black garlic may have beneficial properties as a material for cosmeceuticals.