Formulation of an Antioxidant Cosmetic Cream Containing Coffea arabica Fractions

Coffee is a very popular drink, which is traditionally used to supplement meals and for hedonistic purposes beyond of its functional and health properties. The coffee provides a multitude of bioactive by-products that can be used for the formulation of dermocosmetics. In this context, this work aimed to develop an emulsion using extracts of Coffea arabica as well as evaluate its physicochemical stability and antioxidant activity. Two formulations were developed with incorporation of different fractions of green seeds from Coffea arabica. Then, both formulations were submitted to extremes temperatures (5 and 45oC) for 15 days, and pH, electrical conductivity, organoleptic characteristics and presence of viable microorganisms were determined. Total phenolic content was estimated by Folin-Ciocalteu method. Afterwards, fractions and cream were tested by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (•DPPH) radical scavenging assay. The formulation 2 showed no instability for all parameters evaluated. The hexane, glycolic, methanol, chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions, and cream at 150 µg/mL deactivated •DPPH radical at 24.7, 51.8, 86.2, 89.5, 90.9 and 79.8%, respectively. Furthermore, the emulsion kept its antioxidant activity even under accelerate tests. The results confirmed the stability of cream containing coffee fractions, suggesting its use as natural antioxidant cosmetic cream and further experiments to evaluate its photoprotective potential.