Mia Seilern
⚠️ Data is provided for informational purposes only. It may contain inaccuracies and should be independently verified. This is not medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional before making health decisions.

Description: HYDROLYZED SILK — hydration, smoothing, film-forming.

All Functions: hydration, smoothing, film-forming

Quick Facts:

  • Category: humectant

Proven Benefits At A Glance:

  • Hydrolyzed silk is a broken-down form of silk protein that can be chemically modified in laboratory settings
  • When modified with DOPA (a compound created through enzymatic processes), hydrolyzed silk showed increased ability to neutralize free radicals in controlled experiments
  • The research is preliminary and focused on industrial/tissue engineering applications rather than consumer skincare testing
Safety: Generally Low ConcernResearch confidence: Fair

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.

🧪 HYDROLYZED SILK

Chemical structure of HYDROLYZED SILK

HYDROLYZED SILK

CAS Number: 96690-41-4

Also Known As:

Category: humectant

EC Number: 306-235-8

Korean Name: 하이드롤라이즈드실크

Protein hydrolyzates, silk

HYDROLYZED SILK is a humectant ingredient used in skincare formulations.

hydrationsmoothingfilm-forming

🌍 Regulatory Status

EU: No restriction on fileUS: No restriction on file

📊 Comedogenicity

No data yet
Not rated for this ingredient yet.

📚 Research & Evidence

PUBMED CITATIONS
1
Data sources: EU CosIng PubMed

🔬 The Science

Hydrolyzed silk fibroin (HSF) is silk protein that has been broken into smaller pieces. In a 2024 study published in Sheng Wu Gong Cheng Xue Bao, researchers explored what happens when hydrolyzed silk undergoes a specific chemical modification called DOPA modification, which was performed using an enzyme called tyrosinase (Sheng Wu Gong Cheng Xue Bao, 2024). #1: Antioxidant potential—When hydrolyzed silk was modified with DOPA through enzymatic catalysis, it demonstrated enhanced ability to neutralize two types of free radicals (DPPH and superoxide radicals) in laboratory testing, with increases measured at 507.80% and 78.23% respectively compared to unmodified hydrolyzed silk (Sheng Wu Gong Cheng Xue Bao, 2024).

However, it’s important to note this is a controlled laboratory measurement, not a test on human skin. The research describes this as foundational work for potential applications in tissue engineering and biomaterials rather than finished skincare products. The modification process itself is complex and required immobilized enzymes in the study. The sources provided do not contain human clinical data, consumer efficacy testing, safety studies for topical use, or concentration information relevant to actual skincare formulations. This appears to be early-stage research exploring what’s theoretically possible with modified silk protein rather than evidence that hydrolyzed silk in consumer products delivers these benefits.

💧 Skin Type Compatibility

No data yet
Per-skin-type data isn’t curated for this ingredient yet.

⚠️ Don’t Combine With

No data yet
No known incompatibilities on file for this ingredient.

🧴 Products Containing HYDROLYZED SILK

📄 Related Research

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

Similar Ingredients

AMODIMETHICONE
AMODIMETHICONE
emollient
View
BETA-GLUCAN
BETA-GLUCAN
active
View
BETAINE
BETAINE
humectant
View
BUTYLENE GLYCOL
BUTYLENE GLYCOL
humectant
View
COCOS NUCIFERA FRUIT EXTRACT
COCOS NUCIFERA FRUIT EXTRACT
humectant
View
CYCLOHEXASILOXANE
CYCLOHEXASILOXANE
emollient
View
CYCLOMETHICONE
CYCLOMETHICONE
emollient
View
CYCLOPENTASILOXANE
CYCLOPENTASILOXANE
emollient
View