A nine-amino-acid peptide designed to sit in the receptor that normally receives the hormone signal telling skin to make pigment.
How it works
Melanocyte-stimulating hormone binding to its receptor is one of the triggers at the top of the pigmentation pathway. Research associates nonapeptide-1 with blocking that binding — intervening before melanin production begins, which is why it appears alongside tyrosinase inhibitors rather than instead of them.
Tolerability
Peptides of this class are well tolerated with no photosensitising effect.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Specific evidence is limited; for targeted brightening actives the conventional advice is to check with your doctor.
