The Effects of Fabric Containing Chamaecyparis obtusa Essential Oil on Atopic Dermatitis-Like Lesions: A Functional Clothing Possibility

Background: Essential oil derived from Chamaecyparis obtusa (EOCO) has been used as an alternative treatment for allergy-related diseases due to its immune-modulating characteristics. Clothing has the longest and most intense contact with human skin, and functional fabrics with intrinsic properties have been increasingly implemented in medical applications. Specially designed fabrics may support atopic dermatitis (AD) treatment. In this study, the effects of fabric containing EOCO on AD were investigated using an NC/Nga mouse model.

Methods: The fabric was applied for 6 h per day for 14 days. The therapeutic effects were evaluated according to measurements of skin lesion severity (modified SCORAD score), transepidermal water loss (TEWL), serum IgE and inflammatory cytokine levels, lesion thickness measured after hematoxylin and eosin staining, and immunohistochemical and Western blot analysis for skin epidermal differentiation protein.

Results: The EOCO group exhibited significantly reduced modified SCORAD score, TEWL, and serum IgE levels. Among the inflammatory cytokines analyzed, only the mean values of regulated on activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted were observed to be decreased compared with other control groups. The histological analysis of the skin also revealed that the EOCO group expressed reduced epidermal hyperplasia and recovered filaggrin, involucrin, and loricrin expression.

Conclusions: It was confirmed that fabric containing EOCO has anti-atopic and anti-inflammatory properties. The study data show that fabric containing EOCO can be implemented as an alternative functional clothing for people suffering from AD.

Keywords: Atopic dermatitis; Chamaecyparis obtusa essential oil; Fabric; Functional clothing; NC/Nga mice; Regulated on activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted.