Natural Products and Stem Cells and Their Commercial Aspects in Cosmetics

This chapter reviews natural ingredients that are most often used in cosmetic formulations and discusses properties and qualities as well as the regulatory aspects of these compounds. Natural products form a large and diverse group of compounds derived from sources encompassing the plant and animal kingdoms examples of which include among others, insects, marine algae and microbes. Many natural products are used in cosmetics, and several others have a great potential for the development of new cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. Natural raw materials such as plant extract from seeds, herbs, flowers and fruits have always been part of research and development studies as evidenced by the large number of cosmetic products with botanicals being commercialized. Regulations in the European market are stringent for use of stem cells in cosmetics. Most industries in the United States implement an even-tempered way of qualifying their topical formulations containing stem cells, as ‘cosmetic’ by adjusting claims to bypass the tough drug regulations.