Mangosteen pericarp extract inhibits the formation of pentosidine and ameliorates skin elasticity.

The inhibition of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) by daily meals is believed to become an effective prevention for lifestyle-related diseases. In the present study, the inhibitory effect of hot water extracts of mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) pericarp (WEM) on the formation of pentosidine, one of AGEs, in vitro and in vivo and the remedial effect on skin conditions were measured. WEM significantly inhibited pentosidine formation during gelatin incubation with ribose. Several compounds purified from WEM, such as garcimangosone D and rhodanthenone B, were identified as inhibitors of pentosidine formation. Oral administration of WEM at 100 mg/day to volunteer subjects for 3 months reduced the serum pentosidine contents. Because obtaining skin biopsies from healthy volunteers is ethically difficult, AGE accumulation in the skin was estimated by a fluorescence detector. The oral administration of WEM significantly reduced the skin autofluorescence intensity, demonstrating that WEM also reduced AGE accumulation in the skin. Furthermore, the elasticity and moisture content of the skin was also improved by WEM. These results demonstrate that intakes of WEM reduces the glycation stress and results in the improvement of skin conditions.