Is Phenylethyl Resorcinol safe in cosmetics?
Phenylethyl Resorcinol has a safety rating of "EXCELLENT" in our database. EU status: permitted. US status: permitted.
EXCELLENT
Cosmetic Ingredient
Phenylethyl Resorcinol
INCI: PHENYLETHYL RESORCINOL
Phenylethyl Resorcinol (CAS 85-27-8) is a cosmetic cosmetic ingredient functioning as Tyrosinase inhibitor; TRP-1 inhibitor; melanogenesis inhibitor. NOAEL 20 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.
Cross-Vertical Regulatory Divergence
Phenylethyl Resorcinol is classified GHS Danger (H302, H314, H315, H318, H319, H411) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Source: Cosmetics: ingredients.eu status; Chemicals: ghs classifications.signal word/hazard statement code
Function
Tyrosinase inhibitor; TRP-1 inhibitor; melanogenesis inhibitor
Editorial assessment
EXCELLENT
Preliminary editorial note — not a computed safety verdict.
Regulatory Status
EU EU Status
permitted
US US Status
permitted
US Notes
Permitted cosmetic ingredient. No specific FDA restriction. Not listed in OTC drug monographs. Cosmetic brightening claims acceptable. Patent-protected by Symrise.
For full compliance data across multiple jurisdictions, use the Substance Compliance tool.
Safety Data
Margin of Safety, dermal absorption, and sensitization profile summaries for Phenylethyl Resorcinol.
Calculate MoS for your specific formulation with the MoS Calculator.
Pre-Calculated Safety Assessment
Pre-calculated NOAEL → SED → MoS audit trail for Phenylethyl Resorcinol across SCCS product categories, with measured dermal absorption where available.
Sensitization AOP Dashboard
Adverse Outcome Pathway data across 5 assays (DPRA, KeratinoSens, hCLAT, LLNA, NESIL) aggregated from public sources.
DPRA Cys %
6.2%
DPRA Lys %
0.6%
KeratinoSens IC50
88.411 µM
hCLAT CV75
38.9 µg/mL
GHS: inconclusive
Source: DPRA: Cosmetics Europe; KS: Cosmetics Europe; hCLAT: Cosmetics Europe
ECHA REACH Registration
European Chemicals Agency REACH dossier and Substances of Very High Concern listing.
Registration Type
Full
Tonnage Band
10 - 100 tonnes
Substance Type
SUBSTANCE
SVHC Candidate
No
Function Categories & List Membership
Cosmetic/Chemical Function Categories
Antioxidant
Editorial summary
Preliminary editorial summary for Phenylethyl Resorcinol — not a computed safety verdict. See the sourced toxicological data above.
Regulatory Flags
eu-unrestricted
us-permitted
symrise-patented-symwhite-377
tyrosinase-inhibitor
trp-1-inhibitor
22x-more-potent-than-kojic-acid-in-vitro
oil-soluble
chemically-stable
low-concentration-active-0.1-0.5pct
no-oxidation-instability
no-dedicated-mos
Chemical Function
Antioxidant
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.
ChEMBL ID
CHEMBL3961037
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Phenylethyl Resorcinol allowed in the EU?
Phenylethyl Resorcinol EU regulatory status: permitted. This is based on EU Regulation 1223/2009 and its amendments.
What does Phenylethyl Resorcinol do in cosmetics?
Phenylethyl Resorcinol functions as: Tyrosinase inhibitor; TRP-1 inhibitor; melanogenesis inhibitor. It is classified as a cosmetic ingredient in our database. CAS number: 85-27-8.
Is Phenylethyl Resorcinol used outside cosmetics?
Phenylethyl Resorcinol 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 Phenylethyl Resorcinol have different safety status in cosmetics vs industrial chemicals?
Phenylethyl Resorcinol is classified GHS Danger (H302, H314, H315, H318, H319, H411) in the chemicals database but is allowed in EU cosmetics.
Compliance Tools
Check Phenylethyl Resorcinol 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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