<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><!DOCTYPE article  PUBLIC "-//NLM//DTD Journal Publishing DTD v3.0 20080202//EN" "http://dtd.nlm.nih.gov/publishing/3.0/journalpublishing3.dtd"><article xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" dtd-version="3.0" xml:lang="en" article-type="research article"><front><journal-meta><journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">ABC</journal-id><journal-title-group><journal-title>Advances in Biological Chemistry</journal-title></journal-title-group><issn pub-type="epub">2162-2183</issn><publisher><publisher-name>Scientific Research Publishing</publisher-name></publisher></journal-meta><article-meta><article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.4236/abc.2023.131004</article-id><article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">ABC-123339</article-id><article-categories><subj-group subj-group-type="heading"><subject>Articles</subject></subj-group><subj-group subj-group-type="Discipline-v2"><subject>Chemistry&amp;Materials Science</subject></subj-group></article-categories><title-group><article-title>
 
 
  Anti-Melanogenesis Activity of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extract from &lt;i&gt;Perilla frutescens&lt;/i&gt; Seeds
 
</article-title></title-group><contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Satoshi</surname><given-names>Suzuki</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1"><sup>1</sup></xref><xref ref-type="corresp" rid="cor1"><sup>*</sup></xref></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Hitomi</surname><given-names>Fujisawa</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2"><sup>2</sup></xref></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Junpei</surname><given-names>Abe</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2"><sup>2</sup></xref></contrib><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Ken-ichi</surname><given-names>Kimura</given-names></name><xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2"><sup>2</sup></xref></contrib></contrib-group><aff id="aff1"><addr-line>Research Department, Misho Corporation Limited, Adachi-ku, Tokyo, Japan</addr-line></aff><aff id="aff2"><addr-line>Chemical Biology Laboratory, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Iwate University, Morioka, Iwate, Japan</addr-line></aff><pub-date pub-type="epub"><day>09</day><month>02</month><year>2023</year></pub-date><volume>13</volume><issue>01</issue><fpage>42</fpage><lpage>55</lpage><history><date date-type="received"><day>18,</day>	<month>January</month>	<year>2023</year></date><date date-type="rev-recd"><day>25,</day>	<month>February</month>	<year>2023</year>	</date><date date-type="accepted"><day>28,</day>	<month>February</month>	<year>2023</year></date></history><permissions><copyright-statement>&#169; Copyright  2014 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. </copyright-statement><copyright-year>2014</copyright-year><license><license-p>This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</license-p></license></permissions><abstract><p>
 
 
  <em>Perilla frutescens</em> seed (PFS) oil is reported to inhibit skin photoaging; however, its effect on melanogenesis has not yet been investigated. Herein, we tested the anti-melanogenesis activity of an oil-based extract from PFS with supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO
  <sub>2</sub>). In a cell culture system, B16 mouse melanoma cells were treated with the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract and other samples. The PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract decreased melanin production by approximately 90% in B16 mouse melanoma cells without cytotoxicity at 100 μg/mL. This effect was greater than that of the well-known melanogenesis inhibitor, kojic acid. Although a hexane-extracted PFS oil and a squeezed PFS oil also decreased melanin production in the B16 cells, the inhibitory effect of the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract was higher than both of these. Chemical analysis of the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract and squeezed PFS oil showed that almost 90% of the components of both oils were 
  <em>α</em>-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid. Furthermore, the ratio of those three fatty acids across both samples was almost the same. When the three fatty acids were mixed in the same ratio as in the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract, the IC
  <sub>50</sub> of the mixture for melanin production in B16 melanoma cells was identical to that of the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract. However, the IC
  <sub>50</sub> of the squeezed PFS oil was approximately 6.6 times higher than that of the mixture. Although those fatty acids are the main inhibitory ingredients against melanin production in all of the extracts, some factor(s) in the squeezed PFS reduce their affinity with the cells. These results indicated that the PFS scCO
  <sub>2</sub> extract could be a superior melanogenesis inhibitor. Although its main ingredients are probably the same as those of the squeezed PFS oil, it is necessary to extract with scCO
  <sub>2</sub> for stronger anti-melanogenesis activity.
 
</p></abstract><kwd-group><kwd>&lt;i&gt;Perilla frutescens&lt;/i&gt;</kwd><kwd> Melanogenesis</kwd><kwd> Supercritical Carbon Dioxide</kwd><kwd> B16 Mouse Melanoma Cells</kwd></kwd-group></article-meta></front><body><sec id="s1"><title>1. Introduction</title><p>Melanogenesis is involved in the production of melanin by melanocytes and the subsequent distribution of melanin to the basal cells of the epidermis [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref1">1</xref>] . Melanin is vital in the development of skin color [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref2">2</xref>] and protection of skin from ultraviolet light [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref3">3</xref>] ; however, excessive melanin production leads to adverse effects, such as blotches and freckles on the skin, and therefore, many melanogenesis suppressors have been previously investigated. Examples of these suppressors include arbutin [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref4">4</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref5">5</xref>] , kojic acid [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref6">6</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref7">7</xref>] , 4-n-butylresorcinol [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref8">8</xref>] , derivatives of ascorbic acid [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref9">9</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref10">10</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref11">11</xref>] , tranexamic acid [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref12">12</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref13">13</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref14">14</xref>] , and crude extracts of plants, such as aloe (Aloe ferox) [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref15">15</xref>] , shrubby sophora (Sophora flavescens) [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref16">16</xref>] , and rice bran [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref17">17</xref>] .</p><p>Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton var. frutescens is a traditional herbal grass native to East Asia [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref18">18</xref>] . Extracts from P. frutescens leaves have shown anti-inflammatory activity [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref19">19</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref20">20</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref21">21</xref>] and P. frutescens seeds (PFSs), which are generally used as a raw material of edible oil, contain many fatty acids including linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref18">18</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref22">22</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref23">23</xref>] . PFS oil has been reported to inhibit skin photoaging [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref22">22</xref>] , and medicinal and nutritional benefits are associated with the consumption of the oil [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref24">24</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref25">25</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref26">26</xref>] . Yet, the effects of PFS oil on melanogenesis have not been investigated, even though the three aforementioned fatty acids are known to show anti-melanogenesis activity [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref27">27</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref28">28</xref>] .</p><p>The use of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO<sub>2</sub>) fluid as an extractant for plant oils has gained attention. The scCO<sub>2</sub> dissolves in lipids [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref29">29</xref>] and because the critical temperature and pressure of carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) are relatively low [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref30">30</xref>] , extraction via scCO<sub>2</sub> does not require large-scale equipment. We have previously reported that a scCO<sub>2</sub> extract of Kuji amber inhibits melanin production in B16 mice melanoma cell lines [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] . The anti-melanogenic effect of the scCO<sub>2</sub> extract is greater than that of an ethanol extract obtained from the same amber, indicating that scCO<sub>2</sub> is more efficient than ethanol in extracting anti-melanogenic compounds from Kuji amber [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] . This suggests that scCO<sub>2</sub> may also represent a valuable extractant for other natural products, such as PFS.</p><p>Herein, we examined the anti-melanogenesis effects of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and compared these effects to those of kojic acid, a well-known melanogenesis inhibitor, and PFS oils. We further evaluated the content ratio of some fatty acids in the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and squeezed PFS oil, as well as examined if these fatty acids are the main active ingredients contributing to the anti-melanogenesis activity.</p></sec><sec id="s2"><title>2. Materials and Methods</title><sec id="s2_1"><title>2.1. Preparation of Test Samples</title><sec id="s2_1_1"><title>2.1.1. Reagents and Materials</title><p>Kojic acid was purchased from Tokyo Kasei Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan), whilst α-Linolenic acid and linoleic acid were purchased from Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation (Osaka, Japan). Oleic acid was purchased from Hayashi Pure Chemical Ind., Ltd. (Osaka, Japan), and PFS oil, produced via the squeezing method (squeezed PFS oil), and PFS powder were purchased from PAL LLC (Miyagi, Japan).</p><p>In addition, cold-pressed PFS oil produced from Chinese PFS was purchased from Tencho Foods Industries Co., Ltd. (Aichi, Japan).</p></sec><sec id="s2_1_2"><title>2.1.2. PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> Extract</title><p>The PFS powder acquired from PAL LLC was used for scCO<sub>2</sub> and for hexane extraction. This powder, which contains only approximately 15% of the total oil, is essentially the residue after the PFS is squeezed to yield oil. Extraction using scCO<sub>2</sub> was carried out as previously described [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] , but with some minor modifications: 1.0 g of PFS powder was packed into a 10 mL extraction container before CO<sub>2</sub> was passed in at 40˚C under 20 MPa at a flow rate of 3.0 mL/min. The scCO<sub>2</sub> containing PFS oil was then discharged into a glass bottle and evaporated at room temperature (22˚C - 27˚C) and normal pressure (approximately 0.1 MPa). This extraction was performed using a PU-2086 plus CO<sub>2</sub> pump, CO-2060 plus oven, and BP-2080 plus back pressure regulator (JASCO Corporation, Tokyo, Japan).</p></sec><sec id="s2_1_3"><title>2.1.3. Hexane-Extracted PFS Oil</title><p>Hexane-extracted PFS oil was produced similarly to the ethanol extracts as previously described [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] , with some minor modifications. In this case, 30 g of PFS powder, which was the residue of the squeezed PFS oil described above, was soaked and then stirred in 90 mL of n-hexane. After overnight treatment, the solution was centrifuged at 2600 g for 10 min. Next, the supernatant was filtered using filter paper and a 0.22 &#181;m nylon membrane before the filtrate was evaporated using a rotary evaporator. Finally, the remaining oil was collected.</p></sec></sec><sec id="s2_2"><title>2.2. Cell Culture</title><p>B16 mouse melanoma cells (JCRB0202) were purchased from JCRB Cell Bank (National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition, Osaka, Japan). Cell culture was performed under 5% CO<sub>2</sub> at 37˚C in Eagle’s minimum essential medium (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation), which contained 10% (v/v) fetal bovine serum (Biological Industries, Cromwell, CT, USA) and penicillin-streptomycin (100 U/mL and 100 &#181;g/mL; Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation). The density of cell seeding was 8 &#215; 10<sup>3</sup> cells/well in a 96-well plate for cytotoxicity analysis, and 2.4 &#215; 10<sup>5</sup> cells/well in 6-well plates for the determination of melanin content. After overnight culturing, 100 &#181;M of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX) (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation) was added to all the cells, except for the unstimulated group. Additionally, the cells stimulated by IBMX were treated with the test samples in triplicate. The cells were then incubated for 72 h.</p></sec><sec id="s2_3"><title>2.3. Cytotoxicity</title><p>Cytotoxicity of the test samples was evaluated as previously described [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] . Cells in the 96-well plate were incubated for 2 h at 37˚C with 0.5 mg/mL 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) (Dojindo Laboratories, Kumamoto, Japan) dissolved in the medium. After washing the cells with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation), the MTT formazan inside the cells was dissolved using dimethyl sulfoxide (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation). The absorbance of the solutions was determined at 545 nm using a microplate reader (CHROMATE MODEL 4300; Awareness Technology Inc., Palm City, FL, USA), and absorbance at 630 nm was deducted as background. The cell viability of each group was recorded as a percentage of the viability of the control group.</p></sec><sec id="s2_4"><title>2.4. Melanin Production</title><p>Melanin content in the cells was measured as described previously [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] , with some minor modifications. Initially, B16 melanoma cells in 6-well plates were rinsed with PBS and then lysed in 1 M NaOH at room temperature. Absorbance at 450 nm was determined, and the absorbance at 630 nm was deducted as the background. Authentic synthetic melanin (Fujifilm Wako Pure Chemical Corporation) was then used to generate a standard curve.</p><p>Simultaneously, protein concentrations of the cell solutions were determined using the Takara BCA Protein Assay Kit (Takara Bio Inc., Shiga, Japan).</p><p>The melanin/protein concentration in the unstimulated group was subtracted from that in each well. Finally, the melanin/protein concentration for each group was recorded as a percentage of those in the control group.</p></sec><sec id="s2_5"><title>2.5. Microscopic Photography</title><p>The cells were photographed with an inverted microscope (AE2000; SHIMADZU, Kyoto, Japan), while removing phase contrast to clarify the black color of melanin.</p></sec><sec id="s2_6"><title>2.6. Chemical Analysis of Fatty Acids</title><p>Analyses of α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid, all of which are reported to be rich in PFS oil [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref22">22</xref>] , were carried out with gas chromatography (GC). Percentages of the three fatty acids in the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and the squeezed PFS oil were determined as follows: Samples (40 mg) were mixed with heptadecanoate as the internal standard and saponified with 1.5 mL of 0.5 M sodium hydroxide methanol solution, before heating at 100˚C for 9 min. Then, they were methyl esterified with 2 mL of boron trifluoride methanol complex methanol solution and heated at 100˚C for 7 min. Subsequently, 3 mL of n-hexane and 5 mL of saturated salt solution were added, followed by the collection of their hexane phases, and analysis with GC.</p><p>The analysis conditions for GC were as follows: Machine, 7890B (Agilent Technologies, Inc., Santa Clara, CA, USA); detector, FID; column, DB-23 (Agilent Technologies, Inc.) (0.25 mm i.d. &#215; 30 m, 0.25 &#181;m film thickness); temperature of injection port, 250˚C; temperature of detector, 250˚C; temperature of column, 50˚C (1 min) to 170˚C (10˚C/min) to 210˚C (1.2˚C/min); sample introduction system, split (1:20); flow rate of hydrogen, 35 mL/min; flow rate of air, 300 mL/min; flow rate of nitrogen (make up gas), 20 mL/min; pressure of helium (carrier gas), 115 kPa; injection volume, 1 &#181;L.</p></sec><sec id="s2_7"><title>2.7. IC<sub>50</sub> of Melanin Production</title><p>α-Linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid were mixed in the same ratio (63.0:13.6:10.8) as the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract. Then, various concentrations of this mixture, the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract, and squeezed PFS oil were added to B16 melanoma cells in 6-well plates and their effects on melanin production were measured as described above. The IC<sub>50</sub> of melanin production for each sample was calculated from the logarithmic curve with the equation below, as described previously [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] .</p><p>IC 50 = 10 log ( A / B ) ∗ ( 50 − C ) / ( D − C ) + log ( B )</p><p>A: The concentration; inhibitory ratio is just higher than 50%.</p><p>B: The concentration; inhibitory ratio is just lower than 50%.</p><p>C: The inhibitory ratio of B.</p><p>D: The inhibitory ratio of A.</p></sec><sec id="s2_8"><title>2.8. Statistical Analysis</title><p>Homoscedasticity of sample variances was examined via the Hartley test. Differences in data were analyzed via one-way analysis of variance, and further assessment was performed using Dunnett’s test or Tukey’s test. Data were indicated as the mean &#177; standard deviation. Values of p &lt; 0.05 were deemed significant.</p></sec></sec><sec id="s3"><title>3. Results</title><sec id="s3_1"><title>3.1. Inhibition of Melanin Production by the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> Extract</title><p>The PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract did not show cytotoxicity at 100 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>1</xref>(a)). However, the extract dose-dependently reduced melanin production in the cells. At 100 &#181;g/mL, the reduction in melanin production was estimated to be over 90% than that in the control (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>1</xref>(b)). Based on microscopic photography, many cells with black pigment were observed in the control group because of the stimulation of melanin production by IBMX [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref32">32</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref33">33</xref>] (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>2</xref>(a)).</p><p>Although the number of black cells was not affected by PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract at 1 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>2</xref>(b)), those cells dose-dependently decreased at 10 and 100 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>2</xref>(c) and <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>2</xref>(d)).</p></sec><sec id="s3_2"><title>3.2. Comparison of the Inhibitory Effect of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> Extract and Kojic Acid on Melanin Production</title><p>To determine the strength of the inhibitory effect of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract on melanin production in B16 melanoma cells, the effect was compared to that of kojic acid, a renowned melanogenesis suppressor [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref34">34</xref>] . Kojic acid showed increases in the viability of the cells in some instances, although these were not deemed significant (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig3"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>3</xref>(a)). At a concentration of 100 &#181;g/mL, the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and kojic acid decreased melanin production in the cells compared to the control group by 96.8% and 65.0 %, respectively (p &lt; 0.01) (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig3"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>3</xref>(b)); the inhibitory effect of the former was considerably higher than that of the latter (p &lt; 0.05).</p></sec><sec id="s3_3"><title>3.3. Comparison of the Inhibitory Effect of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> Extract, the Hexane-Extracted PFS Oil and the Squeezed PFS Oil on Melanin Production</title><p>Neither the hexane-extracted PFS oil nor the squeezed PFS oil showed cytotoxicity against B16 cells at 100 &#181;g/mL similar to the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig4"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>4</xref>(a)). At this concentration, the hexane-extracted PFS oil and the squeezed PFS oil considerably decreased melanin production in the cells by 72.2% and 64.2%, respectively, compared to the control group (p &lt; 0.01). However, their inhibitory effects were significantly lower than those of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract (p &lt; 0.01) (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig4"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>4</xref>(b)).</p></sec><sec id="s3_4"><title>3.4. Chemical Analysis of Fatty Acids</title><p>The total content of α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid was 87.4% in the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract, compared to 88.7% in the squeezed PFS oil. The ratio of these three fatty acids among both samples was the same (<xref ref-type="table" rid="table1">Table 1</xref>).</p><table-wrap id="table1" ><label><xref ref-type="table" rid="table1">Table 1</xref></label><caption><title> Concentration of α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid in the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and the squeezed PFS oil</title></caption><table><tbody><thead><tr><th align="center" valign="middle"  rowspan="2"  >Fatty Acid</th><th align="center" valign="middle"  colspan="2"  >Concentration</th></tr></thead><tr><td align="center" valign="middle" >PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >Squeezed PFS oil</td></tr><tr><td align="center" valign="middle" >α-Linolenic acid</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >63.0%</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >63.2%</td></tr><tr><td align="center" valign="middle" >Linoleic acid</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >13.6%</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >12.5%</td></tr><tr><td align="center" valign="middle" >Oleic acid</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >10.8%</td><td align="center" valign="middle" >13.0%</td></tr></tbody></table></table-wrap></sec><sec id="s3_5"><title>3.5. IC<sub>50</sub> of Melanin Production</title><p>The IC<sub>50</sub> of the mixture of α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid to melanin production in B16 melanoma cells was 4.36 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(a)), similar to that of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract (2.99 &#181;g/mL, <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(b)). However, the IC<sub>50</sub> of the squeezed PFS oil was 28.7 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(c)), approximately 6.6 times higher than that of the mixture.</p></sec></sec><sec id="s4"><title>4. Discussion</title><p>PFS oil has been reported to inhibit skin photoaging [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref22">22</xref>] , and the consumption of the oil is also associated with other medicinal and nutritional benefits, for example, the prevention of some diseases, such as cardiovascular disorders, cancer, inflammatory, rheumatoid arthritis, and the promotion of antioxidant activity [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref24">24</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref25">25</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref26">26</xref>] . However, the effect of PFS oil on melanogenesis has not yet been examined.</p><p>B16 mice melanoma cell is a major cell line for cancer research [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref34">34</xref>] . This cell line has also dedicated for the field of melanogenesis research [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref31">31</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref32">32</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref33">33</xref>] . Herein, we examined the effect of PFS oil on melanogenesis with it.</p><p>The results of this investigation confirm that PFS oils, specifically the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract, significantly reduced the amount of melanin produced by B16 cells. Furthermore, the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract reduced melanin production of cells by more than 90%, without cytotoxicity, at a concentration of 100 &#181;g/mL (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig1"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>1</xref> and <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig2"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>2</xref>).</p><p>The PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract showed an inhibitory effect higher than that of kojic acid (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig3"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>3</xref>(b)), a well-known anti-melanogenesis compound [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref35">35</xref>] . Therefore, the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract could represent a new effective melanogenesis inhibitor and a valuable whitening agent.</p><p>The inhibitory effect of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract was considerably higher than that of other PFS oils obtained from the same PFS powder via different methods (the hexane-extracted PFS oil and the squeezed PFS oil) without cytotoxicity (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig4"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>4</xref>). Similar results were obtained when the effect of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract was compared to that of a cold-pressed PFS oil produced from Chinese PFS (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>S1). This suggests that the anti-melanogenesis activity of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract is higher than that of PFS oils obtained via other methods, regardless of where the PFS is produced.</p><p>The total content and ratio of α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, and oleic acid in the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract and the squeezed PFS oil was almost the same as that previously reported in Perilla frutescens oils [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref16">16</xref>] [<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="scirp.123339-ref19">19</xref>] . Because the IC<sub>50</sub> of the mixture of the three fatty acids to the production of melanin in B16 melanoma cells was not different from that of the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(a) and <xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(b)), it was suggested that those fatty acids are the main inhibitory ingredients of the extract. However, the IC<sub>50</sub> of the squeezed PFS oil (<xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig5"><xref ref-type="fig" rid="fig">Figure </xref>5</xref>(c)) was an estimated 6.6 times higher than that of the mixture, indicating that some factor(s) in the squeezed PFS oil reduce(s) the affinity of the fatty acids to the cells.</p></sec><sec id="s5"><title>5. Conclusion</title><p>From the results we have shown here, the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract could be one of the most effective melanogenesis inhibitors. Herein, for the first time, we confirmed that some PFS oils significantly reduced the melanin production of B16 cells, particularly the PFS scCO<sub>2</sub> extract. Interestingly, the use of scCO<sub>2</sub> to extract from PFS was necessary for stronger anti-melanogenesis activity, despite the main inhibitory ingredients likely being the same as other PFS oils.</p></sec><sec id="s6"><title>Acknowledgements</title><p>We would like to thank Editage (https://www.editage.com/) for English language editing.</p></sec><sec id="s7"><title>Conflicts of Interest</title><p>The authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.</p></sec><sec id="s8"><title>Cite this paper</title><p>Suzuki, S., Fujisawa, H., Abe, J. and Kimura, K. (2023) Anti-Melanogenesis Activity of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extract from Perilla frutescens Seeds. 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