Relievable Effect of Alpinetin on Dexamethasone-Induced Skin Aging

: Steroid hormone, glucocorticoid (GC) has strong anti-inflammatory effects by binding to glucocorticoid receptor (GR) inhibiting the expression of inflammatory genes. Therefore, agents that activate the GR have been used for the treatment of dermatitis. However, the agents have side effects such as skin barrier dysfunction and dermal atrophy, inducing skin damage as well as skin aging. It has been reported that GC is activated by 11 be-ta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11 β -HSD1) to increase the activity of the GR. This study aimed to iden-tify natural materials that can effectively inhibit dexamethasone. We found that alpinetin isolated from Alpinia kat-sumadai extract has a significant effect on this. Alpinetin not only inhibited 11 β -HSD1 expression, but also sup-pressed the increase of phosphorylated GR and cortisol concentration. Alpinetin also recovered collagen expression in dexamethasone-treated dermal fibroblasts, and the reduction of dermal thickness in dexamethasnone-treated 3D skin model. These results suggest that alpinetin prevents skin aging induced by the increase of 11 β -HSD1 expression.