Ultraviolet (UV) is the main cause of
sunburn on the skin as it induces
erythema and accelerates pigmentation.
Vitamin C is one of the most frequently used compounds to reduce UV-induced skin pigmentation, but it has limitations in absorption through the skin. In this study, we tested whether a no-
ozone cold plasma (NCP) treatment can improve UV-irradiated skin by helping the action of
Vitamin C. For this, among five groups of HRM-2 hairless mice, four groups of mice were subjected to UVB irradiation, and three groups of UVB-treated mice were treated with NCP,
Vitamin C, and NCP +
Vitamin C, respectively. For evaluating the effect of each treatment, the
melanin and
erythema index was measured during animal experiments. Histological changes were monitored by performing H&E and MTS and IHC against
tyrosinase and
melanin. As a result, the naturally recovered mice showed a 28-point decrease in the
melanin index, whereas a decrease of around 88, 74.3, and 106 points was detected in NCP-,
Vitamin C-, and NCP +
vitamin C-treated mice, respectively. Likewise, only a 39-point reduction in the
erythema index was monitored in naturally recovered mice, but the NCP-,
vitamin C-, and NCP +
vitamin C-treated mice showed a 87.3-, 77-, and 111-point reduction, respectively. Interestingly, the skin tissues of the mice treated with NCP in combination with
Vitamin C mostly recovered from UVB-induced damage. Altogether, this study elucidated the beneficial effect of the treatment of NCP in combination with
Vitamin C on the UVB-irradiated skin, which might be helpful for treating
sunburn on the skin.