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. 2009 Feb;21(1):6-11.
doi: 10.5021/ad.2009.21.1.6. Epub 2009 Feb 28.

Dietary Aloe Vera Supplementation Improves Facial Wrinkles and Elasticity and It Increases the Type I Procollagen Gene Expression in Human Skin in vivo

Soyun Cho  1 , Serah Lee, Min-Jung Lee, Dong Hun Lee, Chong-Hyun Won, Sang Min Kim, Jin Ho Chung
Affiliations

Dietary Aloe Vera Supplementation Improves Facial Wrinkles and Elasticity and It Increases the Type I Procollagen Gene Expression in Human Skin in vivo

Soyun Cho et al. Ann Dermatol. 2009 Feb.

Abstract

Background: No studies have yet been undertaken to determine the effect of aloe gel on the clinical signs and biochemical changes of aging skin.

Objective: We wanted to determine whether dietary aloe vera gel has anti-aging properties on the skin.

Methods: Thirty healthy female subjects over the age of 45 were recruited and they received 2 different doses (low-dose: 1,200 mg/d, high-dose: 3,600 mg/d) of aloe vera gel supplementation for 90 days. Their baseline status was used as a control. At baseline and at completion of the study, facial wrinkles were measured using a skin replica, and facial elasticity was measured by an in vivo suction skin elasticity meter. Skin samples were taken before and after aloe intake to compare the type I procollagen and matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP-1) mRNA levels by performing real-time RT-PCR.

Results: After aloe gel intake, the facial wrinkles improved significantly (p<0.05) in both groups, and facial elasticity improved in the lower-dose group. In the photoprotected skin, the type I procollagen mRNA levels were increased in both groups, albeit without significance; the MMP-1 mRNA levels were significantly decreased in the higher-dose group. Type I procollagen immunostaining was substantially increased throughout the dermis in both groups.

Conclusion: Aloe gel significantly improves wrinkles and elasticity in photoaged human skin, with an increase in collagen production in the photoprotected skin and a decrease in the collagen-degrading MMP-1 gene expression. However, no dose-response relationship was found between the low-dose and high-dose groups.

Keywords: Aging; Aloe vera; Matrix metalloproteinase; Procollagen; Wrinkles.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The type I procollagen mRNA levels measured by real-time RT-PCR before and after aloe vera gel intake in the lower-dose group (n=6) and the higher-dose group (n=6). Wilcoxon's signed rank test was used for statistical analysis.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The collagen-degrading MMP-1 mRNA levels before and after aloe vera gel intake in the lower-dose group (n=6) and the higher-dose group (n=6). Statistical significance was tested by Wilcoxon's signed rank test.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Type I procollagen (Takara) immunostaining in the buttock skin before and after aloe vera intake (original magnification ×200). The results are representative of 6 biopsied subjects in each group.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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