Tetramethylbutylphenol (nano)

Tetramethylbutylphenol (nano) abbreviated MBBT, is an organic solid. The solid MBBT is ground into a dispersion, resulting in particle sizes of 60 to 200 nanometers. MBBT is practically insoluble in water and has limited solubility in cosmetic oils. The maximum concentration of MBBT is 10 %.

Tetramethylbutylphenol (nano) is used in the form of microparticles in sun creams. The protective effect is given from 280 to 400 nm (UV A+UV B). The advantage of microparticulation of this preparation is that it combines the advantages of organic and inorganic UV filters by combining scattering, reflection and absorption of light.

Tetramethylbutylphenol (nano) is a so-called broad-band UV filter with a pronounced filter effect even in the long-wave UV-A range. The nanoscale substance is invisible to the human eye in sun protection products and does not leave a whitish film on the skin. The penetration into the skin is low.

Tetramethylbutylphenol has a not insignificant allergenic potential (González-Pérez R et al. 2007). An estrogenic effect on the organism has not been proven (Ashby J et al. 2001).

Organic light protection filters are all those UV filters whose effect is not exclusively based on the inorganic, physically active substances titanium dioxide or zinc oxide. Organic, also known as chemical UV filters, are photoactive substances that are able to absorb light quanta in a certain wavelength range (ultraviolet radiation in the range of about 280 to 400 nm = ultraviolet radiation = UVB/UVA spectrum). The absorbed UV is then released as thermal energy without penetrating the skin. In this reversible photoisomerization, the energy of the absorbed photon must correspond to the energy required to lift an electron in the molecule of the filter substance from a lower to a higher orbit. In order to protect over the entire width of the wavelengths relevant to humans from 290 to 400 nm, several chemical filters with different absorption maxima are usually combined. With a suitable combination of organic and physical filters, the content of organic filters can also be reduced with the same UV protection. This is desirable, since especially photounstable organic UV filters can cause phototoxic and photoallergic reactions depending on their concentration in the finished product.

1. Ashby J et al (2001) Lack of binding to isolated estrogen or androgen receptors, and inactivity in the immature rat uterotrophic assay, of the ultraviolet sunscreen filters Tinosorb M-active and Tinosorb Regul Toxicol Pharmacol 34: 287-291.
2. González-Pérez R et al (2007) Allergic contact dermatitis from methylene-bis-benzotriazolyl tetramethylbutylphenol (Tinosorb M). Contact dermatitis 56:121.
3. Liuti F et al. (2015) Contact dermatitis caused by Liuti F et al. (2015) Contact dermatitis caused by Tinosorb® M: the importance of pach testing with pure methylene bis-benzotriazolyl tetramethylbutylphenol.contact dermatitis 73:192-193.