Excellent Antioxidant

L-Valine

INCI: VALINE

L-Valine (CAS 72-18-4) is a cosmetic antioxidant functioning as Essential branched-chain amino acid that inhibits lipid peroxidation and. NOAEL 628 mg/kg bw/day (cross-referenced against ToxValDB ECHA IUCLID); EU Regulation 1223/2009 status: permitted. Industrial safety data is also available in the chemical safety database. Same-CAS public records also appear in industrial chemical safety and pharmaceutical data.

View industrial chemical safety profile for CAS 72-18-4 →

Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Function
Essential branched-chain amino acid that inhibits lipid peroxidation and enhances the accessibility of fat-soluble reactive oxygen species (ROS) for scavenging. The hydrophobic branched-chain side chain of valine partitions into lipid-rich environments (sebum, membrane bilayers), enabling antioxidant protection in the lipid phase of the skin. Component of the free amino acid antioxidant pool.
Safety Rating
EXCELLENT

Chemistry & Identifiers

Formula
C5H11NO2
MW
117.15 g/mol
EC Number
200-773-6
PubChem CID
6287
IUPAC Name
(2S)-2-amino-3-methylbutanoic acid
InChIKey
KZSNJWFQEVHDMF-BYPYZUCNSA-N

Regulatory Status

EU EU Status permitted
US US Status permitted
US Notes FDA GRAS as direct food additive. CIR amino acid class assessed safe.

For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.

Safety Data

Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for L-Valine.

Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.

Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment

Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for L-Valine across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.

ECHA REACH Registration

European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.

Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
100 - 1,000 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No

Additional Ingredient Properties

2 property records from structured ingredient metadata.

acne
{"cas_number": "72-18-4", "anti_acne_mechanism": "anti_inflammatory", "comedogenicity_rating_0_to_5": "0", "acne_type_efficacy": "inflammatory", "sebum_reduction_pct_clinical": "0-5", "prescription_required_usa": "No", "otc_drug_monograph_category": "No", "max_otc_concentration_pct": "No limit", "japan_quasi_drug_anti_acne": "No", "korea_functional_cosmetic_acne": "No", "eu_cosmetic_restriction_ac…
anti_aging
{"anti_aging_claim": "barrier-repair", "mechanism_of_action": "Building block for proteins, NMF component", "target_skin_layer": "epidermis", "collagen_stimulation": "Mild", "elastin_protection": "Mild", "wrinkle_reduction_pct": "4-8", "clinical_study_duration_weeks": "8", "sample_size": "25", "double_blind": "No", "placebo_controlled": "Yes", "published_journal": "Int J Cosmet Sci", "improvement_…

Function Categories & List Membership

Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Flavouring and nutrient Fragrance No specific technical function
Regulatory List Membership (2)
FDA Substances Added to Food (EAFUS) Consumer Product Chemical

Expert Verdict

Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for L-Valine.

Regulatory Flags

gras-fda cir-approved antioxidant lipid-peroxidation-inhibitor branched-chain fda_food_additive

Chemical Function

No specific technical function Flavouring and nutrient Fragrance

Regulatory Lists

Australia; Food and drug - smoking-related products Europe food_additive; Substances Added to Food (formerly EAFUS) (2/2019) consumer_product pharmaceutical

Cross-Vertical Safety Context

Same-CAS public records found in pharmaceutical data.

SOURCE ChEMBL / DrugCentral / FAERS DB_PHARMA CAS match

Pharmaceutical Data

Same-CAS rows from the pharmaceutical spoke database.

Compound
VALINE
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL43068
Max Phase
2
Adverse Event Associations
2
View full pharmaceutical profile →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is L-Valine safe in cosmetics?

L-Valine has a safety rating of "EXCELLENT" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.

Is L-Valine allowed in the EU?

L-Valine EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.

What does L-Valine do in cosmetics?

L-Valine functions as: Essential branched-chain amino acid that inhibits lipid peroxidation and enhances the accessibility of fat-soluble reactive oxygen species (ROS) for scavenging. The hydrophobic branched-chain side chain of valine partitions into lipid-rich environments (sebum, membrane bilayers), enabling antioxidant protection in the lipid phase of the skin. Component of the free amino acid antioxidant pool.. It is classified as a Antioxidant in our database. CAS number: 72-18-4.

Is L-Valine used outside cosmetics?

L-Valine also appears in industrial chemical safety and pharmaceutical data. The cross-vertical cards on this page render same-CAS public rows from the matched databases.

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