{"id":42641,"date":"2025-08-04T10:51:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T10:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/42641\/"},"modified":"2025-08-04T10:51:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T10:51:08","slug":"pomegranates-rise-in-skincare-and-ingestible-beauty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/42641\/","title":{"rendered":"Pomegranate\u2019s rise in skincare and ingestible beauty"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since ancient times, the pomegranate tree has been viewed as a symbol of life, fertility and strength. While in more recent years, the pomegranate has been dubbed a \u2018superfood\u2019 thanks to its high levels of vitamins and polyphenol antioxidant ellagic acid from ellagitannins. <\/p>\n

Newer research has shown that the ellagitannins are transformed by gut bacteria into the metabolite compound Urolithin A, which has been shown to decrease inflammation and has also been said to increase lifespan and healthspan in animal-based models. <\/p>\n

For example, a study <\/a>undertaken by US-based scientists in 2019 that was published in the International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research found that pomegranate could extend the lifespan and reduce intestinal fat for Caenorhabditis elegans.<\/p>\n

While there has been plenty of research in the food and nutrition space showing the health and wellness benefits of pomegranates, the fruit also becoming a star in the beauty industry and being used in both topical and ingestible formulations. <\/p>\n

Topical pomegranate oil: antioxidant and anti-ageing benefits<\/p>\n

One beauty brand that has formulated with pomegranate for its topical benefits is the Swiss beauty and naturopathic brand Weleda. In April 2024, Weleda released its Pomegranate and Maca Peptides Firming Facial Care <\/a>range, which is made with cold-pressed pomegranate oil.<\/p>\n

According to the brand, it is an \u201cideal component for skin care from the age of 40.\u201d It said that pomegranate seeds have an average oil content of between 12 and 20% and contain punicic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid that belongs to the omega-5 group of fatty acids. <\/p>\n

Weleda also noted that pomegranate oil has an antioxidant effect, promotes cell renewal and skin regeneration, nourishes ageing, stressed and dry skin, and also has a \u201cpotent antioxidant effect and can help to break down free radicals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Exosome innovation: Naolys\u2019 pomegranate-based skin care<\/p>\n

In April 2025, French biotech firm Naolys launched its new ExoCell range, a collection of customisable exosomes,<\/a> which are the result of two years of its applied research programme with the University of Bordeaux.<\/p>\n

One of these, Aethelis Granata, uses the \u201cbiological power of pure exosomes extracted from pomegranate plant cells,\u201d according to the company, and \u201cinfluences a key post-translational modification process that is linked to epigenetic regulation.\u201d <\/p>\n

Through this pathway, Naolys said it has been \u201cproven to trigger a cascade of cellular responses\u201d and that \u201cit supports chromatin organisation, enhances DNA repair mechanisms, stimulates mitochondrial energy production, and reinforces intercellular communication, ultimately contributing to a visibly healthier, more resilient skin.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anne-Laure Larrivi\u00e8re, who is director of marketing and communications at Naolys, explained that the company chose to work with pomegranate because it\u2019s one of the most fascinating plants when it comes to longevity and resilience.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve gone one step further with Aethelis Granata ExoCell, by sustainably extracting exosomes from pomegranate plant cells,\u201d she shared. \u201cThese exosomes help the skin reactivate its own cellular language. They stimulate key mechanisms involved in longevity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Larrivi\u00e8re continued to say that in the firm\u2019s own research it found out that \u201cpomegranate exosomes can particularly stimulate SUMOylation, which in turn helps repair DNA, boosts mitochondrial activity and improves intercellular communication.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said the results were confirmed by a clinical study that Naoyls undertook that showed \u201cvisibly healthier, more hydrated, more resilient skin.\u201d <\/p>\n

According to Larrivi\u00e8re, Naolys now views pomegranate as \u201cmuch more than a trendy fruit.\u201d Instead it is \u201ca timeless botanical ally, combining tradition, science and performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Urolithin A and mitophagy: targeting cellular longevity<\/p>\n

In January 2024, French multinational beauty company L\u2019Or\u00e9al invested in a startup Timeline,<\/a> which in collaboration with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology de Lausanne (EPFL), created Mitopure-branded urolithin A\u2014a postbiotic targeting mitochondrial health and longevity.<\/p>\n

According to Timeline, it is the first postbiotic nutrient \u201cshown to trigger a crucial recycling process within our cells called \u2018mitophagy\u2019\u2014targeting age-related cellular decline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mitochondria provides a lot of energy for skin to fight against ageing, but with time, dysfunctional mitochondria lead to reduced energy production, cellular decline and skin signs of aging like sagginess, dullness, wrinkles and weakened skin barrier.<\/p>\n

The company explained that mitophagy acts as a recycling and cleansing mechanism for defective mitochondria, allowing them to repair themselves and improve their performance to provide valuable health benefits.<\/p>\n

Julie Faitg, senior manager of applied research and regulatory affairs at Timeline, described \u2018mitophagy\u2019 as \u201ca Pac Man that eats the dysfunctional mitochondria but with age doesn\u2019t work as well anymore\u201d and said that Timeline started studying this subject 15 years ago, investigating pomegranate ellagitannins, a precursor to urolithin A.<\/p>\n

Studies have shown that the best way to get more urolithin A is by eating foods rich in ellagitannins that support production the body\u2019s own urolithin A production in the gut.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you have the right gut microbiome you can process more of it,\u201d said Faitg. <\/p>\n

Timeline started by looking at the effects of urolithin A on muscles and has since conducted six clinical trials, which reported outcomes such as increasing muscle function and improving muscle strength.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs our next target we wanted to look at skin as it\u2019s the largest organ; the first army to protect us from the outside world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Studies have shown that overall, urolithin A can increase skin hydration, decrease wrinkles and improve the skin biome. <\/p>\n

The research also indicates that it can increase mitochrondria respiration (which decreases with age), and another study showed it helped with an \u201cupregulation of collagen genes,\u201d according to Faitg.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Since ancient times, the pomegranate tree has been viewed as a symbol of life, fertility and strength. While…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42642,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[37459,64,63,37460,5424,37461,37462,37463,11008,36143,22616,37464,37465,10680,9436,37466,37467,37468,9699,37469,37470,15353,32867,19392,11013,12613,1625,37471,37472,37473,1861,8212,37474,22632,17033,37475,29118,37476,12626,37477,11020,105,16642,12633,37478],"class_list":["post-42641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-18-19-years","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-bare-chest","tag-beauty","tag-black-background","tag-brunette","tag-caucasian","tag-close-up","tag-color-image","tag-confidence","tag-cross-section","tag-displaying","tag-face","tag-food-and-drink","tag-fresh","tag-glamour","tag-grinning","tag-happy","tag-head-and-shoulders","tag-health-beauty","tag-healthy-eating","tag-healthy-living","tag-holding","tag-horizontal","tag-human-face","tag-lifestyle","tag-lipstick","tag-making-a-face","tag-one-person","tag-people","tag-photography","tag-pomegranate","tag-portrait","tag-showing","tag-single-object","tag-skincare","tag-slice","tag-smiling","tag-smirking","tag-studio-shot","tag-technology","tag-woman","tag-young-adult","tag-young-women"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42641"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42641\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}