Protective effects of Ecklonia cava extract on the toxicity and oxidative stress induced by hair dye in in-vitro and in-vivo models

The study from May 2019 explored the potential of Ecklonia cava extract to mitigate the harmful effects of hair dye containing p-phenylenediamine (PPD) on human skin cells and zebrafish embryos. The researchers found that incorporating 5% and 7% E. cava extract into the hair dye did not alter its coloring properties. In vitro tests showed that the extract significantly reduced the cytotoxicity of the dye on human dermal fibroblasts and keratinocytes. In vivo experiments with zebrafish demonstrated that the extract significantly lowered oxidative stress and developmental toxicity caused by the hair dye. The study concluded that adding 7% E. cava extract to hair dye at a concentration of 250 µg/mL can significantly decrease the harmful effects of PPD-containing hair dyes, indicating that E. cava extract could be a beneficial additive to enhance the safety of hair dyes. However, the exact number of human cells or zebrafish used in the study was not mentioned in the summary.