When it comes to hyaluronic acid, it is easy to imagine a single molecule with one function: attracting water and hydrating the skin.
In reality, from a cosmetic perspective, simply talking about “hyaluronic acid” says very little.
Molecular weight, structure, degree of modification, and the technology used to formulate the ingredient can profoundly change its behavior on the skin surface.
And it is precisely from this idea that SHAROHYAL® MATRIX was born, an active ingredient developed by Sharon Personal Care, now part of Eternis Personal Care.
Its uniqueness does not consist simply in the presence of hyaluronic acid, but in the construction of a multi-form system that combines different hyaluronic ingredients with hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans.
The result is a technology designed to act on multiple dimensions of skin hydration, simultaneously improving the feeling of plumped skin and the appearance of fine lines.
And the manufacturer's data is particularly interesting: in tests conducted with a formulation containing 2.5% SHAROHYAL® MATRIX, a reduction in wrinkle depth was observed both immediately after application and after 28 days of use.
But to understand why, one must first forget the idea that there is only one hyaluronic acid.
There is not just one hyaluronic acid
Hyaluronic acid is a glycosaminoglycan naturally present in the body and represents one of the main biological systems involved in managing water in tissues.
In cosmetics, it is used primarily for its humectant and film-forming properties.
But one hyaluronic acid molecule does not necessarily behave like another.
The most important difference concerns the size of the polymer chains.
A high-molecular-weight form tends to remain predominantly on the skin surface, where it can form a hydrophilic film capable of contributing to water retention and a feeling of smoother skin.
When the chain is modified or hydrolyzed, however, its size and physicochemical properties change, and consequently, so do the ways in which the ingredient interacts with the skin surface.
To this is added another technological possibility: cross-linking the chains.
In this case, the molecules are linked together to form a three-dimensional structure capable of retaining large quantities of water and remaining on the surface for longer.
It is therefore possible to use different forms not because one is necessarily “better” than all the others, but because each can play a different role within a formulation.
This is exactly the principle behind SHAROHYAL® MATRIX.
What is SHAROHYAL® MATRIX?
SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is a system consisting of different forms of hyaluronic acid and hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans.
The INCI declared by the manufacturer includes:
Aqua, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Propanediol, Glycerin, Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid.
The functional component therefore includes:
- Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
- Sodium Hyaluronate
- Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
- Hyaluronic Acid
- Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans
Completing the system are water, glycerin, and propanediol, which constitute the aqueous vehicle of the active ingredient.
What makes this composition interesting is precisely the coexistence of different forms, instead of using a single form of hyaluronic acid.
Sodium Hyaluronate: hydration and surface film
Sodium Hyaluronate is the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid and is one of the forms most widely used in hydrating cosmetics.
Its high affinity for water allows it to contribute to maintaining the hydration of the skin's surface layer.
This translates not only into a greater feeling of comfort but also into a skin surface that is softer and visually more uniform.
The hydration of the stratum corneum is in fact closely linked to its elasticity and appearance.
Adequately hydrated skin tends to show small surface irregularities less clearly.
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid: when size changes
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is derived from the controlled fragmentation of hyaluronic acid chains.
Hydrolysis allows for the obtainment of chains of smaller dimensions compared to the original polymer forms, modifying their physicochemical characteristics.
This does not automatically mean that a hydrolyzed form “crosses the skin to the dermis.”
That is an oversimplification.
The behavior of an ingredient on the skin depends on the entire formulation and its chemical-physical characteristics.
The advantage of including it in a system like SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is rather to pair a reduced-chain form with other forms of hyaluronic acid, creating a more articulate functional profile.
Hyaluronic Acid: the unmodified form
In the system, we also find Hyaluronic Acid, meaning hyaluronic acid not indicated as a salt or cross-linked derivative.
Its presence further completes the system of different hyaluronic forms.
Instead of betting everything on a single molecular configuration, SHAROHYAL® MATRIX builds a true matrix of complementary hyaluronic forms.
And this is precisely the philosophy of the active ingredient.
Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer: a three-dimensional network to retain water
The most technologically interesting component is probably the Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer.
Unlike a linear chain, a cross-linked polymer has links between the different chains that generate a three-dimensional structure.
Let’s imagine the difference between a long thread and a net.
The net can create a structure capable of trapping and retaining water, forming a more persistent hydrating reservoir on the skin surface.
This technology therefore allows for behavior different from traditional linear forms.
It is not simply about “more hyaluronic acid.”
It is about hyaluronic acid organized in a different structure.
And this is one of the reasons why the combination of linear, hydrolyzed, and cross-linked forms can be much more interesting than using just one form.
Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans: not just hyaluronic acid
SHAROHYAL® MATRIX does not stop at hyaluronic acid.
The formula also includes Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans.
Glycosaminoglycans are a family of polysaccharides fundamental to the extracellular matrix and connective tissues.
Hyaluronic acid itself belongs to this large family.
Including hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans therefore means further expanding the active ingredient’s hydrophilic system, adding molecules with different characteristics compared to hyaluronic acid alone.
This is important because the concept behind SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is not simply:
“more hyaluronic acid = more hydration.”
It is:
“different forms of hydrophilic molecules = different and complementary behaviors on the skin.”
The real strength: a matrix, not a single molecule
This is where the name MATRIX becomes particularly appropriate.
SHAROHYAL® MATRIX brings together in the same system:
linear forms + hydrolyzed form + cross-linked form + glycosaminoglycans.
Each component contributes its own characteristics.
The polymer forms can contribute to the formation of a hydrating film.
The cross-linked form creates a three-dimensional structure capable of retaining water.
The hydrolyzed form presents different characteristics linked to the reduction of the chain size.
Glycosaminoglycans further expand the system of hydrophilic molecules.
The result is a multi-level approach to surface hydration, instead of relying on a single type of hyaluronic acid.
And what does this mean for the appearance of the skin?
Well-hydrated skin is not just softer.
Water directly influences the biomechanical properties of the stratum corneum.
When hydration increases, the skin surface can become more elastic, smooth, and regular.
This has a very important aesthetic consequence: fine lines and surface irregularities can appear less evident.
This is the reason why hydration represents one of the most interesting cosmetic tools for temporarily improving the appearance of fine lines.
And it is precisely on this point that SHAROHYAL® MATRIX presents particularly interesting data.
What do the manufacturer's tests show?
The manufacturer's technical documentation reports in vitro and in vivo tests dedicated to evaluating the efficacy of the active ingredient.
Particularly interesting is the profilometric study conducted on 20 women between the ages of 35 and 65.
The participants applied a serum containing 2.5% SHAROHYAL® MATRIX to one half of the face twice a day for 28 days, while the other half was used as a control/placebo.
Wrinkle depth was evaluated through profilometry.
The results declared by the manufacturer are:
−15.6% in wrinkle depth just 30 minutes after the first application.
And after 28 days of use:
−15.1% in wrinkle depth.
These numbers are particularly interesting because they show two distinct aspects.
The first is a rapid cosmetic effect, observable as early as 30 minutes after the first application.
The second is the maintenance of an improvement in wrinkle depth after a continuous period of use.
This does not mean that a structural wrinkle is biologically “erased.”
It means that, under the test conditions, the skin surface appeared visually and instrumentally more uniform.
Why can the effect be so rapid?
The speed of the result is consistent with one of the most interesting characteristics of cosmetic hyaluronic acid: hydration can rapidly modify the optical appearance of the skin surface.
When the skin's surface structures increase their water content, they can become more turgid and regular.
Small depressions are therefore optically attenuated.
In the case of a system containing different forms of hyaluronic acid, this action can be accompanied by the ability of the cross-linked component to form a persistent hydrating structure on the surface.
The result is what in cosmetic language is often defined as the plumping effect.
The skin appears fuller, smoother, and firmer.
But the most interesting data point is not just the “flash effect”
An immediate effect can be interesting, but SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is not presented exclusively as an ingredient for a momentary result.
The data after 28 days in fact shows a reduction in wrinkle depth even after continuous use.
This allows us to distinguish between two different cosmetic phenomena:
immediate effect: increase in surface hydration and consequent improvement in the appearance of fine lines;
long-term effect: maintenance of a better state of skin hydration during continuous use of the tested product.
It is precisely this combination that makes the technology interesting.
Not just skin that immediately looks smoother, but a system designed to maintain a high level of hydration over time.
Beware of a very common mistake: “smaller = reaches the dermis”
One of the most abused claims in hyaluronic acid marketing is:
“The molecules are smaller, so they penetrate to the dermis.”
It is not that simple.
The stratum corneum represents an extremely selective barrier, and the skin penetration of a molecule depends on numerous factors: size, structure, chemical properties, vehicle, concentration, contact time, and the condition of the skin barrier.
This is why it is not correct to automatically turn a reduction in molecular weight into a promise of deep penetration.
And it is also unnecessary to do so.
The strength of SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is much more interesting: the combination of different forms allows for the design of a system with different behaviors on the skin surface, without having to resort to promises of “hyaluronic acid that reaches the dermis.”
Hydration, wrinkles, and the quality of the skin surface
When we talk about cosmetic anti-aging, we immediately tend to think of collagen, elastin, peptides, and retinoids.
But there is another fundamental element: the quality of the skin surface.
Dehydrated skin can appear more marked, rough, and irregular.
Adequately hydrated skin instead appears more elastic, smooth, and luminous.
This is why a system like SHAROHYAL® MATRIX can be particularly interesting in products intended for:
- dehydrated skin;
- dry skin;
- loss of comfort;
- fine lines;
- dull and inelastic-looking skin;
- anti-aging formulations focused on the plumping effect.
Not because hyaluronic acid can replace a biologically active treatment for collagen.
But because hydration and the appearance of wrinkles are closely linked, especially regarding surface lines.
It is not “five times hyaluronic acid”
Another clarification is important.
Having five hyaluronic components does not necessarily mean having “five times” the amount of hyaluronic acid.
The INCI allows one to know which ingredients are present, but does not reveal the precise percentages of the individual forms within the complex.
Furthermore, SHAROHYAL® MATRIX is a complex commercial ingredient, not simply a mixture of five raw materials added separately to the final formula.
Its technology lies precisely in the predefined combination of the different components.
That is why it is more correct to speak of a multi-hyaluronic system or a matrix of hyaluronic forms and glycosaminoglycans.
Why is it different from simple “hyaluronic acid” on the label?
Because behind that apparently simple wording, there can be completely different technological worlds.
A cosmetic containing a single form of Sodium Hyaluronate is not necessarily equivalent to a cosmetic containing a system like SHAROHYAL® MATRIX.
In the second case, we find simultaneously:
a linear form, a hydrolyzed form, a cross-linked form, hyaluronic acid, and hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans.
It is a more complex formulation strategy, designed to combine different methods of water management and different interactions with the skin surface.
And this is the true value of the technology.
SHAROHYAL® MATRIX: a new generation of cosmetic hydration
The evolution of cosmetic hyaluronic acid does not necessarily consist of searching for an ever-smaller molecule.
It consists of understanding that there is no single ideal form for every function.
High-molecular-weight, hydrolyzed, and cross-linked forms possess different characteristics.
SHAROHYAL® MATRIX exploits this very diversity, bringing together multiple hyaluronic forms and hydrolyzed glycosaminoglycans within a single system.
The consequence is a much more sophisticated approach to managing skin hydration.
And the cosmetic test data are consistent with this setup: in the formulation tested by the manufacturer, containing 2.5% SHAROHYAL® MATRIX, a 15.6% reduction in wrinkle depth was observed after just 30 minutes and 15.1% after 28 days.
It is therefore not simply “hyaluronic acid.”
It is a technology that seeks to exploit different forms of the same large family of molecules to obtain a more articulate hydrating and plumping effect.
And it is precisely here that hyaluronic acid ceases to be a simple word to put on a label and becomes true formulation technology.
Technical sources
Sharon Personal Care / Eternis Personal Care, official technical documentation SHAROHYAL® MATRIX: composition, technology, in vitro tests, and in vivo cosmetic studies. Manufacturer's technical documentation regarding the profilometric study on 20 volunteers, with a formulation containing 2.5% SHAROHYAL® MATRIX and evaluation of wrinkle depth after 30 minutes and 28 days.
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