J Antimicrob Chemother. 2007 Jun;59(6):1182-4. Epub 2007 Apr 21.
Resveratrol inhibition of Propionibacterium acnes.
Docherty JJ, McEwen HA, Sweet TJ, Bailey E, Booth TD.
Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Biochemistry, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine, Rootstown, OH 44272, USA. jjd@neoucom.edu
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effects of the anti-inflammatory hydroxystilbene, resveratrol, on Propionibacterium acnes growth. METHODS: Three different strains of P. acnes were tested against resveratrol at concentrations between 0 and 200 mg/L. Piceatannol was included as a second hydroxystilbene to compare with resveratrol, and erythromycin and benzoyl peroxide were used as positive controls. RESULTS: After 24 h of treatment with resveratrol, the average 50% inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) was 73 mg/L and the average 100% inhibitory concentration (IC(100)) was 187 mg/L for the three strains of P. acnes tested. The IC(50) and IC(100) of piceatannol were 123 and 234 mg/L, respectively. The highest concentration of resveratrol tested (200 mg/L) was bactericidal, whereas lower concentrations were bacteriostatic. CONCLUSIONS: Resveratrol, an anti-inflammatory hydroxystilbene, is capable of inhibiting P. acnes growth.
PMID: 17449884
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That study did not measure a clinical outcome like the number of acne spots. Only test tube effect against 3 strains of P. acnes. Unclear if the same effect will be seen in the skin with topical application. Of if this wll affect the acne lesions. Or if safe and will not cause contact allergy or some other unfavorable skin effect.
It has been demonstrated to be safe without undesirable skin effects when applied topically to mice:
Biol Pharm Bull. 2008 May;31(5):955-62.
Delivery of resveratrol, a red wine polyphenol, from solutions and hydrogels via the skin.
Hung CF, Lin YK, Huang ZR, Fang JY.
School of Medicine, Fu Jen Catholic University, Taipei County 242, Taiwan.
Resveratrol, the main active polyphenol in red wine, has been demonstrated to show benefits against skin disorders. The bioavailability of orally administered resveratrol is insufficient to permit high enough drug concentrations for systemic therapy. In this study, we examined the feasibility of the topical/transdermal delivery of resveratrol. The effects of vehicles on the in vitro permeation and skin deposition from saturated solutions such as aqueous buffers and soybean oil were investigated. The general trend for the delivery from solutions was: pH 6 buffer=pH 8 buffer>10% glycerol formal in pH 6 buffer>pH 9.9 buffer>pH 10.8 buffer>soybean oil. A linear relationship was established between the permeability coefficient (K(p)) and drug accumulation in the skin reservoir. Viable epidermis/dermis served as the predominant barrier for non-ionic resveratrol permeation. On the other hand, both the stratum corneum (SC) and viable skin acted as barriers to anionic resveratrol. Several prototype hydrogel systems were also studied as resveratrol vehicles. The viscosity but not the polarity of the hydrogels controlled resveratrol permeation/deposition. Piceatannol, a derivative of resveratrol with high pharmacological activity, showed 11.6-fold lower skin permeation compared to resveratrol. The safety profiles of resveratrol suggested that the hydrogel caused no SC disruption or skin erythema. It was concluded that delivery via a skin route may be a potent way to achieve the therapeutic effects of resveratrol. This is the first report to establish the permeation profiles for topically applied resveratrol.
PMID: 18451526
The paper also mentions a high permeability of the stratum corneum (SC) to resveratrol, unlike other lipophilic compounds where it serves as a barrier:
CONCLUSIONS
Despite good partitioning into the SC, the permeability of
highly lipophilic molecules is always low. This is probably
due to the accumulation of lipophilic drugs in the SC. This
phenomenon was not observed with non-ionic resveratrol,
which showed higher permeability via the skin. These results
support the superiority of resveratrol for both topical and
transdermal delivery. Resveratrol transport via the skin was
closely related to the vehicle in which it was formulated, with
aqueous buffers with lower pH values exhibiting good permeability/
deposition. The viable epidermis/dermis but not
the SC layer acted as a diffusion barrier for resveratrol permeation.
Piceatannol, a more-hydrophilic analogue of resveratrol,
showed lower permeation compared to resveratrol.
Resveratrol delivery by skin route may avoid the degradation
because the low metabolism in the skin, resulting in the
possible prolongation of half-life and sufficient concentration
in the systemic circulation. Moreover, resveratrol retained
within the skin after topical application can be an efficient
way to be a therapy or prevention of UV exposure and skin
carcinogenesis. Further study is, of course, needed to confirm
these efficiencies. This study indicates the promise of further
in vivo and clinical applications of resveratrol delivery via
the skin.
