Quercetin as a therapeutic agent for skin problems: a systematic review and meta-analysis on antioxidant effects, oxidative stress, inflammation, wound healing, hyperpigmentation, aging, and skin cancer

source extracted confidence: high 2026-04-09
#quercetin #oxidative-stress #wound-healing #humans #animals

Quercetin as a therapeutic agent for skin problems: a systematic review and meta-analysis on antioxidant effects, oxidative stress, inflammation, wound healing, hyperpigmentation, aging, and skin cancer

Okselni et al., 2025 | Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol | Meta Analysis

Citation

Okselni Tia, Septama Abdi Wira, ... Saputri Ariyanti. Quercetin as a therapeutic agent for skin problems: a systematic review and meta-analysis on antioxidant effects, oxidative stress, inflammation, wound healing, hyperpigmentation, aging, and skin cancer. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol. 2025-May;398(5):5011-5055. doi:10.1007/s00210-024-03722-3

Abstract

Quercetin is abundant in plants and has notable pharmacological properties for skin health. This review aims to comprehensively evaluate the effects of quercetin on skin-related issues, adhering to the PRISMA guidelines and analyzing studies from ScienceDirect, Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed. Of the 1,398 studies identified, 65 studies met the criteria for meta-analysis. The meta-analysis indicated that quercetin had powerful antioxidant properties, protecting against oxidative stress by significantly lowering levels of MDA (Z-score, 2.51), ROS (Z-score, 3.81), and LPO (Z-score, 4.46), and enhancing enzymes of GSH (Z-score, 5.46), CAT (Z-score, 5.20), and SOD (Z-score, 4.37). Quercetin acted as an anti-inflammatory by significantly suppressing protein regulators such as NF-κβ, AP-1, and MAPKs (ERK and JNK), cytokines of TNFα, IL-6, IL-1β, IL-8, and MCP-1, and enzymes of COX-2, iNOS, and MPO, while upregulating the cytokine IL-10. Additionally, quercetin significantly suppressed IL-4 (Z-score, 3.16) and IFNγ (Z-score, 3.76) cytokines involved in chronic inflammation of atopic dermatitis. Quercetin also supported wound healing by significantly decreasing inflammatory cells (Z-score, 5.60) and enhancing fibroblast distribution (Z-score, 5.98), epithelialization (Z-score, 8.57), collagen production (Z-score, 4.20), and angiogenesis factors of MVD (Z-score, 5.66) and VEGF (Z-score, 3.86). Furthermore, quercetin significantly inhibited tyrosinase activity (Z-score, 1.95), resulting in a significantly reduced melanin content (Z-score, 2.56). A significant reduction in DNA damage (Z-score, 3.27), melanoma cell viability (Z-score, 2.97), and tumor formation was also observed to ensure the promising activity of quercetin for skin issues. This review highlights quercetin's potential as a multifaceted agent in skin care and treatment.

Key Findings

This review highlights quercetin's potential as a multifaceted agent in skin care and treatment.

Outcomes Measured

  • inflammatory markers

Population

Field Value
Population See abstract
Sample Size 1398
Age Range See abstract
Condition stress

MeSH Terms

  • Quercetin
  • Oxidative Stress
  • Wound Healing
  • Humans
  • Animals
  • Antioxidants
  • Skin Neoplasms
  • Skin Diseases
  • Hyperpigmentation
  • Inflammation
  • Aging
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents
  • Skin

Evidence Classification

  • Level: Meta Analysis
  • Publication Types: Journal Article, Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis
  • Vertical: quercetin

Provenance

Source extracted via PubMed E-utilities API on 2026-04-09