Database/Emollient/Acetyl Histidine
Mostly natural · ISO 16128

Is Acetyl Histidine natural?

Mostly. Fermentation-derived histidine and its water of hydration are natural; the acetyl cap comes from petrochemical acetic anhydride.

INCI nameAcetyl Histidine
CAS2407-02-1
FormulaC8H13N3O4 · 215.21 Da
FunctionEmollient · Humectant
FeedstockHistidine is produced by microbial fermentation and then…

How we scored it

Histidine C6H9N3O2 155.16 (fermentation, natural) + H2O 18.02 (natural) = 173.17 natural; + acetyl C2H2O 42.04 (acetic anhydride, petrochemical) = total 215.21. 173.17/215.21 = 0.80.
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

Histidine is produced by microbial fermentation and then acetylated on its amino group using acetic anhydride. The acetyl group is the only petrochemical-derived fragment.

In plain English

A modified form of the amino acid histidine, made by fermentation and then chemically capped with an acetyl group. Used as a skin conditioner and moisturiser.

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Structure

2D structure of Acetyl Histidine

(2S)-2-acetamido-3-(1H-imidazol-5-yl)propanoic acid;hydrate

PubChem CID 2724380 ↗

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 Histidine. PubChem CID 2724380. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ACETYL HISTIDINE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ACETYL HISTIDINE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ACETYL%20HISTIDINE