Borneol facilitates the whitening and anti-wrinkle effect of the essential oil extracted from Abies koreana needles

It has been reported that the essential oil extracted from Abies koreana has skin-improving activity, such as anti-wrinkle and whitening effect. However, the key ingredients that facilitate such biological activity has not been fully elucidated. In the present study, to identify the key skin-improving component(s) of the A. koreana essential oil, 10 sequentially fractioned essential oil from A. koreana pine by hydrodistillation were examined for their effect on tyrosinase activity. Out of 10 fractions, only 1 fraction significantly suppressed tyrosinase activity, and subsequent GC/MS analysis indicated that borneol and its acetate ester, bornyl acetate, were unique to the effective fraction, suggesting they are responsible for the skin-improving activity of the essential oil from A. koreana. The biological activity of borneol was evaluated, and borneol significantly inhibited ultraviolet irradiation-induced tyrosinase and matrix metalloproteinase 1 activity while maintain collagen type I synthesis. The results of this study suggest that borneol is a key component of A. koreana essential oil that has potential for mediating whitening and anti-wrinkle effects.