Peptide Skincare & BeautySkin science and ingredient guides

Skin science article

iUNIK Black Snail Restore Serum Versus PURITO Snail Repair Advanced Serum

iUNIK Black Snail Restore Serum Versus PURITO Snail Repair Advanced Serum This barrier-repair serum is formulated around Centella Asiatica Leaf Water and Niacinamide to strengthen the skin barrier and calm redness. This barrier-repair serum is formulated aroun

iUNIK Black Snail Restore Serum Versus PURITO Snail Repair Advanced Serum

This barrier-repair serum is formulated around Centella Asiatica Leaf Water and Niacinamide to strengthen the skin barrier and calm redness.

This barrier-repair serum is formulated around Snail Secretion Filtrate and Madecassoside to strengthen the skin barrier and calm redness.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Centella Asiatica Leaf Water

Glycerin

1,2-Hexanediol

Butylene Glycol

Niacinamide

Glycereth-26

Snail Extract

Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract

Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract

Oryza Sativa Extract

Coffea Arabica Seed Extract

Laminaria Japonica Extract

Sesamum Indicum Seed Extract

Solanum Melongena Fruit Extract

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Cynanchum Atratum Extract

Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract

Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract

Centella Asiatica Extract

Arginine

Carbomer

Adenosine

Ethylhexylglycerin

Sodium Polyacrylate

Xanthan Gum

Sodium Hyaluronate

Pentylene Glycol

Caprylyl Glycol

Water, Centella Asiatica Leaf Water, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Niacinamide, Glycereth-26, Snail Extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract, Oryza Sativa Extract, Coffea Arabica Seed Extract, Laminaria Japonica Extract, Sesamum Indicum Seed Extract, Solanum Melongena Fruit Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Cynanchum Atratum Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Arginine, Carbomer, Adenosine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Polyacrylate, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Hyaluronate, Pentylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol

Snail Secretion Filtrate

Sodium PCA

Hydroxyethylcellulose

Madecassoside

Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract

Ethyl Hexanediol

Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid

Panthenol

Glycosyl Trehalose

Disodium EDTA

Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate

Snail Secretion Filtrate, Glycerin, Water, Sodium PCA, Pentylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Madecassoside, Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract, 1,2-Hexanediol, Ethyl Hexanediol, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Centella Asiatica Extract, Panthenol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Glycosyl Trehalose, Disodium EDTA, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate

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Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.

It is a:

Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin

Emollient, helping to soften skin

Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas

Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives

Centella Asiatica Extract (Centella) is one of the most researched botanical extracts in skincare with decades of studies backing its effects on inflammation, collagen, and the skin barrier.

That research keeps pointing back to the same four triterpenoid saponins: Asiaticoside, Madecassoside, Asiatic Acid, and Madecassic Acid.

These compounds allow centella to dial back inflammation, encourage the skin to build and hold onto collagen, support the barrier and hydration, and bring solid antioxidant activity to protect against signs of aging.

Centella also carries a nice supporting cast of Vitamin A, vitamin C, several B vitamins, and amino acids. Put it all together and you get an ingredient that soothes, hydrates, and protects, all at once.

Most of centella's magic comes from the four big compounds (Asiaticoside, Madecassoside, Asiatic Acid, and Madecassic Acid). These are the actives doing the heavy lifting in almost every centella study.

Here is the short version of what they do in the skin:

So it is not just soothing for the sake of soothing. Centella calms the skin AND helps it rebuild.

Just FYI, not all centella on an ingredient list is the same. What you are getting actually depends on the extract:

Fun fact on the ratios: the leaves tend to be richest in Madecassoside and Asiaticoside, and lower in the two acids. The exact amounts shift with where the plant is grown and how it is processed. This means purity really does vary brand to brand.

Centella is one of the most easygoing actives out there.

It layers well with basically everything: niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, peptides, and vitamin C, and also pairs nicely with stronger actives like retinoids and exfoliating acids where it can help take the edge off irritation.

On the safety side, centella and its triterpenes are classified as weak sensitizers, meaning allergic reactions are possible but uncommon.

Patch tests at 1% and 5% came back negative in test panels, and creams at typical use levels did not cause allergic reactions across large groups of people.

But as with any new active, a patch test is still a smart move for very reactive skin.

Centella is widely used because it is effective at low percentages. For context, human safety testing found no meaningful irritation from creams containing centella extract at everyday use levels (the tested amounts were well under 1%).

The irritancy threshold in animal testing was also above 30% (so real-world formulas sit far below anything concerning).

In collagen lab studies, higher concentrations drove more collagen synthesis, so serums built around centella tend to feature it more prominently.

Bottom line: you will find centella working nicely anywhere from a fraction of a percent up to hero-ingredient levels depending on whether it is a supporting soother or the main event.

Fun fact: Centella has been used as a medicine and in food for many centuries. As a medicine, it is used to treat burns, scratches, and wounds.

Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:

The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.

Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.

Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.

Topically, glycerin does several things at once:

Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.

Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.

This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.

Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Pentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:

Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.

On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.

Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.

Water. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.

So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!

Similar Comparisons

The reference edit

Ingredients, questions
& further reading.

Connected source records selected through this article’s public topic index.

01

Formula cabinet

Ingredients & structured notes

Ingredient index

Ingredients Side-by-side

  1. 01Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract
  2. 02Methylpropanediol
  3. 03Glycerin
  4. 04Niacinamide
  5. 05Dipropylene Glycol
  6. 06Sodium Hyaluronate
  7. 07PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
  8. 08Centella Asiatica Extract
  9. 09Polygonum Cuspidatum Root Extract
  10. 10Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract
  11. 11Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
  12. 12Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
  13. 13Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
  14. 14Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract
  15. 15Panthenol
  16. 16Betaine
  17. 17Ascorbic Acid
  18. 18Hydroxyacetophenone
  19. 19Pentylene Glycol
  20. 20Caprylyl Glycol
Source · skinsort.com
02

Product index

Related product references

Product

iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum

iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum ingredients explained: Snail Secretion Filtrate, Centella Asiatica Leaf Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Glycer…

Source: incidecoder.comView reference →

Product

iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum

iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum iUnik Black Snail Restore Serum ingredients explained: Snail Secretion Filtrate (70%), Centella Asiatica Leaf Water (10%), Methylpropanediol, Glycerin, Niaci…

Source: incidecoder.comView reference →
03

Comparison edit

Read side by side