Is PCA safe in cosmetics?
PCA has a safety rating of "GOOD" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: restricted.
Good
Cosmetic Ingredient
PCA
Also known as: AJIDEW A-100, 2-Benzothiazolesulfenic acid morpholide, EINECS 202-700-3, L-Glutamic acid gamma-lactam, 2-Oxopyrrolidine-5-carboxylic acid (+10 more)
PCA (CAS 98-79-3) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Humectant, Moisturising. NOAEL 1000 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 98-79-3 →
Auto-generated CPSR Part A draft with source citations
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
PCA is classified GHS Danger (H315, H318, H319, H335) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Source: Cosmetics: ingredients.eu_status; Chemicals: ghs_classifications.signal_word/hazard_statement_code
Function
Humectant, Moisturising
Safety Rating
GOOD
Chemistry & Identifiers
IUPAC Name
(2S)-5-oxopyrrolidine-2-carboxylic acid
InChIKey
ODHCTXKNWHHXJC-VKHMYHEASA-N
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
US US Status
restricted
US Notes
CIR: SQ - IJT 18(S2):25-34, 1999
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment
Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for PCA across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.
EPA ToxValDB — Toxicity Values
8 toxicity values from EPA ToxValDB (aggregated from CCTE, HPV, ToxRefDB, IRIS, and other regulatory dossiers).
| Endpoint | Value | Species | Route | Duration | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LC50 | >5000 mg/m3 | Rat | inhalation | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LC50 | >5000 mg/m3 | Rat | inhalation | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >2000 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >2000 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| NOAEL | >1000 mg/kg-day | Rat | oral | short-term | ECHA IUCLID |
| NOAEL | >1000 mg/kg-day | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| NOAEL | >1000 mg/kg-day | Rat | oral | - | ECHA IUCLID |
| LD50 | >1000 mg/kg | Rat | oral | - | ChemIDplus |
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
1 property record from structured ingredient metadata.
amino_acid
{"cas_number": "98-79-3", "ingredient_class": "amino_acid", "source_origin": "fermentation", "molecular_weight_range_Da": "129", "amino_acid_composition_key": "pyrrolidone_carboxylic_acid", "charge_at_pH_5_5": "anionic", "water_solubility": "soluble", "oil_solubility": "insoluble", "film_forming_ability": "moderate", "moisture_binding_capacity": "excellent", "NMF_component": "yes", "skin_penetrati…
PubChem Annotations
Safety and regulatory annotations from PubChem (NCBI) aggregated sources.
Safety (1)
Carcinogen Classification
No indication of carcinogenicity to humans (not listed by IARC).
Source: Toxin and Toxin Target Database (T3DB)
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Flavouring and nutrient
Humectant
Expert Verdict
Expert safety assessment and concern-level summary for PCA.
Regulatory Flags
cosing-sourced
eu-permitted
humectant
needs-enrichment
Known Synonyms
AJIDEW A-100
2-Benzothiazolesulfenic acid morpholide
EINECS 202-700-3
L-Glutamic acid gamma-lactam
2-Oxopyrrolidine-5-carboxylic acid
Proline, 5-oxo-
2-Pyrrolidone-5-carboxylate
NSC 9966
Acidum pidolicum
UNII-SZB83O1W42
5-L-Oxoproline
Pidolate
5-Pyrrolidone-2-carboxylic acid
Pyroglutamate
Pyroglutamic acid
Chemical Function
Humectant
Flavouring and nutrient
Regulatory Lists
Europe
pharmaceutical
Canada; pharmaceutical
Canada; pharmaceutical
pharmaceutical
Canada; pharmaceutical
Canada; pharmaceutical
Australian Status
AICIS status: listed
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
PIDOLIC ACID
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL397976
Max Phase
2
Frequently Asked Questions
Is PCA allowed in the EU?
PCA EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does PCA do in cosmetics?
PCA functions as: Humectant, Moisturising. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 98-79-3.
Is PCA used outside cosmetics?
PCA 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.
Does PCA have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
PCA is classified GHS Danger (H315, H318, H319, H335) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Compliance Tools
Check PCA compliance across multiple jurisdictions:
Ingredient Decoder
Paste a full ingredient list for instant analysis
82 Allergen Checker
Check for EU declarable fragrance allergens
Substance Compliance
Check compliance across multiple jurisdictions
MoS Calculator
Calculate Margin of Safety using SCCS methodology
Heavy Metal Limits
Compare limits across jurisdictions
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