Database/Antioxidant/Arbutin
Route-dependent · ISO 16128

Is Arbutin natural?

It depends. Hydroquinone glucoside either extracted from bearberry leaves or built enzymatically from synthetic hydroquinone.

INCI nameArbutin
CAS497-76-7
FormulaC12H16O7 · 272.25 Da
FunctionAntioxidant · Bleaching
FeedstockMost commercial arbutin is now made by enzymatic…

Why the score varies

This ingredient is made commercially by more than one route, and ISO 16128 scores the feedstock actually used. Without a supplier certificate of origin the value cannot be claimed.

RouteFeedstockNOIShareNotes
enzymatic glycosylationsynthetic hydroquinone + glucose0.64majority of commercial supply
plant extractionbearberry (Uva Ursi) or pear leaves1.00minority, marketed as natural-origin
Ask your supplier. A batch-specific certificate of origin or bio-based carbon test (ASTM D6866) settles which route applies.

How we scored it

Route A: bearberry/pear-leaf extraction = 1.0. Route B: hydroquinone (93 Da, petrochemical) + glucose (179 Da, natural) glycosylation, -H2O ≈ 0.66.
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

Most commercial arbutin is now made by enzymatic glycosylation of synthetic hydroquinone with glucose, cheaper and more scalable than plant extraction. A natural-origin route by direct extraction from bearberry (Uva Ursi) or pear leaves also exists commercially.

In plain English

A skin-brightening active found naturally in bearberry and pear leaves. Depending on the supplier it may be extracted from plants or made by joining a lab-made building block with plant sugar.

CosIng definition: Arbutin (or beta arbutin) is the organic compound that conforms to the formula:

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Structure

2D structure of Arbutin

(2R,3S,4S,5R,6S)-2-(hydroxymethyl)-6-(4-hydroxyphenoxy)oxane-3,4,5-triol

PubChem CID 440936 ↗

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. 2Arbutin. PubChem CID 440936. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3ARBUTIN. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4ARBUTIN. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=ARBUTIN