# Viper Venom and Synthetic Peptides: Emerging Active Ingredients in Anti-Ageing Cosmeceuticals
## 1 Introduction  
The animal kingdom represents a precious source for identifying molecules with potential applications in the pharmaceutical industry, medicine and, more recently, in the cosme industry, for example, due to the complex composition of venoms [1]. Venomous animals include snakes, spiders, sea snails, scorptions, lizards, jellyfish, sea anemones and cephalopods, possessing permanently or periodically toxic substances in their bodies [2]. Some of these organisms contain toxic compounds in different tissues, while others possessspecialized venom glands [3]. Venom is a secretion, produced in a specialized gland in an animal, and it is delivered to a target animal through the infriction of a wound. It contains molecules that interfere with normal physiological or biochemical processes, thereby aiding in feeding or defense mechanisms for the producing animal [2; 4; 5; 6].  
Over time, animal venoms--particularly those from snakes, scorptions and lizards--have proven to be remarkable models for understanding many fundamental processes in medicine, also contributing to the development of pharmaceutically active substances with therapeutic effects, still used nowadays (for e.g., Captopril--_Bothrops jararaca_ (Brazilian pit viper or traditionally known as jararaca), Eptiflitidae--_Sistrurus miliarus barbouri_ (with the common name Florida ground rattlesnake or Dusly Pygmy Rattlesnake)). In cosmology, the use of venom represents an innovative field due to the development of neurosocnostics and an increased demand for cosmetic products. Thus, cosmetics based on certain peptides from snake venom, such as neurotoxins, prevent the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles [7].  
Proteins and peptides from snake venom with neurotoxic properties, such as phospholipase A\({}_{2}\)[8; 9; 10; 11], protease inhibitors [12; 13; 14; 15], three-finger toxins [9], nerve growth factor [16] and waglerin [17; 18; 19; 20; 21], could be utilized for their anti-ageing effects or for the development of innovative active ingredients with similar benefits. The primary advantages of these peptides include high target specificity, safety and low toxicity [7].  
In addition to their anti-ageing properties, snake venom peptides have been explored for various other benefits in cosmetic applications like skin firming, antioxidant, moisturizing and skin barrier repair properties, and even for the reduction of periorbital hyperpigmentation [22].  
The development of neurocosmetics containing snake venom, and the continuous increase in demand for cosmetic products claiming an anti-ageing effect, led to the development of synthetic peptides sustaining the same effect, but at a more affordable cost compared to pure venom, such as SYN\({}^{\circledR}\)-AKE (INCI: Dipeptide Diaminobutyroyl Benzylamide Diacetate (and) Glycerin (and) Aqua) (DSM-Firmenich Beauty & Care, Basel, Switzerland) and SYN\({}^{\circledR}\)-COLL (INCI: Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 (and) Glycerin (and) Aqua) (DSM-Firmenich Beauty & Care, Basel, Switzerland) [23; 24].  
The cosmetics industry continuously develops new peptides due to their promising and innovative properties, aligning with the expanding market demand. A wide range of peptides derived synthetically from snake venom, silkworms, etc. are currently available on the market [9].  
Considering these aspects, a major objective of this study was to conduct a comparative analysis between natural venom-derived peptides and their synthetic analogues in currently commercially available cosmetic products, aiming to provide valuable insights into their formulation and impact on the market.