Quercetin and rutin as potential sunscreen agents: determination of efficacy by an in vitro method.

Given that flavonoids are known for their ultraviolet (UV)B photoprotective properties in plants that contain them, we chose to study quercetin (1) and rutin (2) as agents that could potentially be used in sunscreen products. These two substances proved to behave in similar ways. When incorporated in oil-in-water emulsions, at a concentration of 10% (w/w), 1 and 2 give sun protection factor (SPF) values similar to that of homosalate, a standard substance. These two flavonoids also provided a non-negligible level of photoprotection in the UVA range. When used in association with titanium dioxide, the SPF obtained was around 30.