Database/Skin Conditioning/Acetyl Carnitine
100% petroleum · ISO 16128

Is Acetyl Carnitine natural?

No. Both the carnitine core and its acetyl cap trace to petrochemical building blocks in the dominant commercial synthesis route, despite a biological finishing step.

INCI nameAcetyl Carnitine
CAS14992-62-2
FormulaC9H17NO4 · 203.24 Da
FunctionSkin Conditioning
FeedstockPredominantly made by chemical synthesis from petrochemical intermediates…

How we scored it

Carnitine's carbon skeleton is industrially built from petrochemical feedstock (e.g. epichlorohydrin plus trimethylamine) even when a final resolution step is enzymatic; the acetyl cap is also petrochemical. 0/203 = 0.00.
What counts. ISO 16128-2 scores the atoms that remain in the final ingredient. Reagents, solvents, catalysts and protecting groups used during manufacture leave no mass behind and are not counted.

Where it comes from

Predominantly made by chemical synthesis from petrochemical intermediates with enzymatic resolution for chirality. A minor bio-fermentation route may exist but is not commercially dominant for cosmetic grade.

In plain English

A lab-made antioxidant and conditioning ingredient related to a compound the body produces naturally. Despite that natural role in the body, the commercial ingredient is chiefly manufactured from petrochemical starting materials.

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Structure

2D structure of Acetyl Carnitine

3-acetyloxy-4-(trimethylazaniumyl)butanoate

PubChem CID 1 ↗

References

  1. 1ISO 16128-1:2016 and ISO 16128-2:2017 — Guidelines on technical definitions and criteria for natural and organic cosmetic ingredients and products. ISO, Geneva.
  2. 2Acetyl Carnitine. PubChem CID 1. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ACETYL CARNITINE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ACETYL CARNITINE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ACETYL%20CARNITINE