Acetyl Octapeptide-3

Acetyl Octapeptide-3 is a synthetically made peptide consisting of 8 amino acids with an acetyl group on one end.

It was created as a derivative of Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, or Argireline (read about it here), by the same company, and trademarked as SNAP-8®.

It is said to have a similar anti-wrinkle effect to Botox – the octapeptide interacts with the mimic muscles and inhibits their contraction, allowing the wrinkly areas to relax and reducing the appearance of the mimic wrinkles.

Unfortunately, it suffers from the same pitfalls as Argireline. Proteins are famously bad at being absorbed into the skin due to the fact that they are water-soluble and the skin is water-resistant.

To remedy this problem, Acetyl Octapeptide-3 must be carefully incorporated into the emulsion to help it pass through the skin’s lipid barrier. One recent study tentatively approached this problem by using microneedle patches.

Despite the success of Botox-like peptides, they don't actually improve the skin structure in any way; they are only a visual quick fix.