SERINE

📋 Quick facts

Description: SERINE — amino acid, part of the skin natural moisturizing factor (NMF).

All Functions: amino acid, part of the skin natural moisturizing factor (NMF)

Quick Facts:

• Category: humectant

Proven Benefits At A Glance:

• Serine is a non-essential amino acid that your body can make, but dietary intake matters when demand is high
• Research links serine to wound healing speed and hair growth timing
• Serine-related proteins called proteases may play a role in abnormal scar formation
• Serine metabolism affects skin barrier function and may influence inflammatory skin conditions
• Most evidence is from laboratory and animal studies; human skin data is limited

⚗️ Chemical Overview

Serine is an alpha-amino acid that is alanine substituted at position 3 by a hydroxy group. It has a role as a fundamental metabolite. It is a polar amino acid and an alpha-amino acid. It contains a hydroxymethyl group. It is a conjugate base of a serinium. It is a conjugate acid of a serinate. It is a tautomer of a serine zwitterion. DL-serine has been reported in Escherichia coli, Bulbophyllum echinolabium, and Caenorhabditis elegans with data available. See also: L-Serine (annotation moved to).

Source(s): ChEBI, PubChem, LOTUS – the natural products occurrence database, via PubChem

📊 Comedogenicity

🛡️ Safety rating

Safety tier is a starting heuristic from regulatory status and comedogenic rating, not a dermatological verdict — see our Terms for the full disclaimer. Research confidence reflects how many real cited studies back this ingredient, not the strength of their findings.

🌍 Regulatory Status

💧 Skin Type Compatibility

⚠️ Don’t Combine With

📚 Research & Evidence

🔬 The Science

Serine is an amino acid—a building block your body uses to make proteins and other molecules. While your body can synthesize serine on its own (making it “non-essential”), recent research suggests that when demand is high or dietary intake is low, this balance matters for skin health. #1: **Wound Healing and Barrier Recovery** — When serine levels drop, hair follicle stem cells (the cells that regenerate hair) struggle to meet their energy demands, which slows hair growth but actually speeds up skin barrier repair (Cell Metab, 2025). The mechanism involves cells triggering a “stress response” that acts like a dial: as stress increases, the skin prioritizes barrier restoration over hair regeneration.

Conversely, studies in mice show that increasing systemic serine levels accelerates wound healing (bioRxiv, 2025), suggesting that serine availability influences how quickly skin repairs itself. #2: **Abnormal Scar Formation** — Serine proteases—enzymes that cut proteins and happen to contain serine residues—appear involved in hypertrophic (thick, raised) scarring. Specifically, two serine proteases called DPP4 and PLAU show altered activity in scar tissue compared to normal skin (Nat Commun, 2021). Blocking these proteases with inhibitors reduced scarring in mice, suggesting they contribute to excessive collagen deposition during wound healing. However, this research addresses serine protease *inhibition* rather than serine supplementation directly. #3: **Skin Barrier and Inflammation** — Serine protease inhibitors (proteins that naturally regulate these enzymes) are concentrated in skin and help maintain the epidermal barrier—the outermost layer that keeps pathogens out and moisture in (Front Immunol, 2024).

Imbalances in these regulatory proteins are associated with psoriasis and other inflammatory skin disorders, though the exact role of dietary serine in this process remains unclear from these sources. #4: **Metabolic Connections** — Serine metabolism is linked to broader metabolic health. In people with type 2 diabetes-like conditions in mice, abnormal serine breakdown accumulates toxic byproducts in skin and impairs wound healing (bioRxiv, 2025). Modulating serine levels through diet influenced these outcomes in animal models, but human evidence is not presented in these sources. **Important limitations:** Most data comes from cell cultures, mice, or analysis of scar tissue rather than controlled human trials.

The sources discuss serine’s role in cellular processes but don’t establish optimal intake levels for consumers or prove that topical or dietary serine supplementation would improve skin health in healthy people.

📄 Related Research

Matched by search — not necessarily verified support for every statement above.

• Novak JSS et al. (2025). The integrated stress response fine-tunes stem cell fate decisions upon serine deprivation and tissue injury. Cell Metab.
• Vorstandlechner V et al. (2021). The serine proteases dipeptidyl-peptidase 4 and urokinase are key molecules in human and mouse scar formation. Nat Commun.
• Huang Q et al. (2026). NEK7-induced phosphorylation of EGFR on serine 1070 drives the acquired lenvatinib resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma. Hepatology.
• Joulia E et al. (2025). Targeting serine dehydratase supports amino acid homeostasis and skin repair. bioRxiv.
• Wang J et al. (2024). Regulation of epidermal barrier function and pathogenesis of psoriasis by serine protease inhibitors. Front Immunol.

🧴 Products Containing SERINE

• BCL Kansosan Skincare Moisture Base AQ
• RETINOL RETINOL SKIN CREAM
• MyProtein Hair & body wash
• Bioélixire Odżywka do włosów zniszczonych
• Elmiplant Skin Moisture
• fresh skin face
• Farmatodo Mascarilla hidratante nocturna
• Henkel, Schwarzkopf Palette Salon Colors 8.5
• L’Oréal, L’Oreal Consumer products, L’Oréal Paris, Elseve Elseve Liss Caresse [MK] Shampooing perfecteur
• Les Cosmetiques Booster iluminador les cosmetiques nº1 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster antifatiga les cosmetiques nº2 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster radiante les cosmetiques nº3 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster tonificante les cosmetiques nº4 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster efecto barrera les cosmetiques nº6 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster detox les cosmetiques nº7 booster plan
• Les Cosmetiques Booster regenerador les cosmetiques nº9 booster plan
• L’Oréal, L’Oreal Consumer products, L’Oréal Paris, Elseve Elseve Total Repair 5 shampooing reconstituant (format XXL)
• sisbela sisbela
• Tío Nacho Tío Nacho Anti-Caida Engrosador
• 4TEENS Balancing Foam Cleanser
• Superdrug Vitamin e intesive all over body cream
• moisture therapy lip balm
• Henkel, Schwarzkopf Natural & Easy 545 blond cendré
• HEMA Long Lasting Nail Polish 358 Pink Peony
• Eucerin Eucerin, Roughness Relief Lotion, Fragrance Free
• Eucerin
• marc anthony argan shampoo
• Avant Skincare Gentle Rose Beautifying Face Exfoliant
• Pacifica Cosmic Hemp Balancing Face Wash
• Shiseido Bénéfiance NutriPerfect – Lotion Adoucissante Pro-reconstituante
• NIOD Multi-Molecular Hyaluronic Complex (MMHC2)
• Shiseido Benefiance mousse nettoyante confort absolu
• The Ordinary The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution (Solução tonificante de ácido glicólico 7%)
• ordinary suncream
• dr groot shampoo
• Avon Himalaya pink salt scrub
• Clover Smoothing Deep Conditioner
• Paul Mitchell Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shampoo
• collagen face mask
• Eucerin UreaRepair PLUS 10%