How we scored it
Microbial fermentation osmolyte ('bacterial milking' from halophilic bacteria); fermentation-product convention = 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
Commercially produced by fermenting halophilic bacteria (e.g. Halomonas) and extracting the accumulated osmolyte ('bacterial milking'). No significant petrochemical synthesis route is used.
In plain English
A moisturising, skin-protecting ingredient produced by fermenting salt-loving bacteria. The microbes naturally accumulate it to survive salty conditions, and it is harvested from the fermentation broth.
Structure
(5S,6S)-5-hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyrimidine-6-carboxylic acid
References
- 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.
- 2Hydroxyectoin. PubChem CID 12011795. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
- 3HYDROXYECTOIN. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
- 4HYDROXYECTOIN. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=HYDROXYECTOIN