Database/Colorant/Guanine
100% natural origin · ISO 16128

Is Guanine natural?

Yes. Cosmetic-grade guanine is traditionally recovered from fish scales as a byproduct of the fish processing industry, giving a natural-origin pearlescent pigment.

INCI nameGuanine
CAS73-40-5
FormulaC5H5N5O · 151.13 Da
FunctionColorant · Opacifying
FeedstockGuanine used in cosmetics as a pearlescent pigment…

How we scored it

Whole molecule (C5H5N5O) sourced from fish scales per CosIng 'natural purine' description = 1.0.
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

Guanine used in cosmetics as a pearlescent pigment ('pearl essence') is obtained by extraction from fish scales. Chemical synthesis is possible but is not the norm for cosmetic-grade material.

In plain English

A shimmering pigment traditionally obtained from fish scales, used to give nail polishes, eyeshadows and other cosmetics a pearlescent shine.

CosIng definition: Guanine is a natural purine that conforms to the formula:

Structure

2D structure of Guanine

2-amino-1,7-dihydropurin-6-one

PubChem CID 135398634 ↗

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. 2Guanine. PubChem CID 135398634. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3GUANINE. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4GUANINE. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=GUANINE