Database/Skin Conditioning/Orotic Acid
100% natural origin · ISO 16128

Is Orotic Acid natural?

Yes. Orotic acid (vitamin B13) is produced industrially by microbial fermentation from sugar, a natural-origin fermentation product.

INCI nameOrotic Acid
CAS65-86-1
FormulaC5H4N2O4 · 156.10 Da
FunctionSkin Conditioning
FeedstockOrotic acid occurs naturally in milk and is…

How we scored it

Pyrimidine acid; dominant commercial route is microbial fermentation on sugar feedstock; fermentation product = 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

Orotic acid occurs naturally in milk and is produced commercially by fermentation using pyrimidine-accumulating bacterial strains fed on sugar. A chemical synthesis route also exists but is believed less common in cosmetic-grade supply.

In plain English

Also called vitamin B13, this ingredient occurs naturally in milk and is used to condition skin. It's typically produced by fermenting sugar with bacteria, similar to other fermentation-derived acids.

Structure

2D structure of Orotic Acid

2,4-dioxo-1H-pyrimidine-6-carboxylic acid

PubChem CID 967 ↗

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. 2Orotic Acid. PubChem CID 967. National Center for Biotechnology Information. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov ↗
  3. 3OROTIC ACID. CosIng — European Commission cosmetic ingredient database. ec.europa.eu/cosing ↗
  4. 4OROTIC ACID. CosIng u2014 European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/search?search=OROTIC%20ACID