Inhibitory effects of Prunus persica flower extracts on UV-induced skin damage

For an attempt to develop safe materials protecting UV-induced skin damage, plant extracts were evaluated for their antioxidative and free radical scavenging activities. From the results of these screening procedures, the ethanol extract of the flowers of Prunus persica was selected for further study. It was found that Prunus persica (50-200―/ml) inhibited UVB-induced DNA damage measured by tail moment in the Single Cell Gel Electrophoresis (COMET assay) and inhibited UV-induced lipid peroxidation, especially against UVB-induced peroxidation at higher than 10―/ml. Also P. persica (100∼1,000―/―) inhibited the amount of 14 C-arachidonic acid metabolites release from UVB-irradiated keratinocytes and it possessed the protective activity against UV-induced cytotoxicity of keratinocytes. All these results indicate that the flowers of P. persica extract may be beneficial for protection UV-induced skin damage when topically applied.