(+)--Δ-7,8-Dihydroxy-3,3',5'-Trimethoxy-8--4'-Neolignan, an Anti-Acne Component in Degreasing Houtt.

Acne is a common skin condition observed in adolescents. Nutmeg ( Houtt) (MF) is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine; its major toxic components, safrole and myristicin, are rich in essential oils. Essential oils of MF (MFO) were extracted by hydrodistillation; the residue was extracted using 50% methanol (MFE-M). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of MFE-M against and was 0.64 mg. Four compounds were obtained from MFE-M: myristicin (), (+)--Δ-7,8- dihydroxy-3,3,5'-trimethoxy-8--4'-neolignan (), (+)-Δ-7-hydroxy-3,4,3',5'-tetramethoxy 8--4-neolignan (), and e-Δ-7-acetoxy-3,4,3',5'-tetramethoxy-8--4'-neolignan (). Compound exerted the strongest antimicrobial activity, with MICs of 6.25 and 3.12 μg/mL against and , respectively. Moreover, inhibited NO, PGE, iNOS, and COX-2 levels in RAW 264.7 cells induced by LPS or heat-killed ; NO production at 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC) was 11.07 and 11.53 μg/mL, respectively. Myristicin and safrole content was higher in MFO than in MFE-M. MFO and MFE-M caused no skin irritation after a single topical application in Wistar rats. MFE-M, with low safrole and myristicin content, did not cause skin irritation and exhibited an anti-acne effect; moreover, was identified as the active substance. Therefore, MFE-M could be employed to develop anti-acne compounds for use in cosmetics.