US2960442A - Hair dressing method - Google Patents

Description

HAIR DRESSING METHOD David R. Schwarz, Larchmont, N.Y., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Schwartz Bio Research, Inc., Mount Vernon, N.Y., a corporation of New York No Drawing. Filed Apr. 24, 1958, Ser. No. 730,520 Claims. (Cl. 167-87) Many substances have been used or suggested to improve the attractiveness of tonsorial arrangement of humans and even of pets and show animals. Manageability of the hair has become an important cosmetic consideration, especially in recent years.

Products for the purpose that include oils and .fats, with or without additives to aid their emulsion in water, natural or synthetic gums, protein or polypeptide solutions in water, and various synthetic polymers such as polyvinyl pyrrolidones have certain objections as will now be briefly indicated.

Oil or fat based preparations, with or without additives, are generally characterized by imparting an unpleasant greasy appearance and unctuous feel to the coiffure and are moreover subject to rancidity and consequent objectionable odor; furthermore upon contact with garments and furniture, they may lead to staining and for many persons may create added cosmetic problems associated with a natural oily scalp condition.

Aqueous solutions of natural gums and proteins when applied to the coiffure tend to form on drying, brittle films which render the hair stiff and unnatural in appearance, and frequently tend to flake off on the clothes when brushing or combing the hair.

Synthetic materials, particularly those which may be applied by spray are subject to an important objection in addition to those recited above, namely that inhalation of the volatile spray or solvent may produce chronic toxic effects. Such preparations may also be inflammable, causing additional serious hazard in use.

Some or all of the preparations noted tend to retain static electricity upon combing and brushing, resulting in mutual repulsion and disarray of the coiffure.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide a hair dressing preparation in the form of an aqueous solution which greatly improves the manageability of hair on humans or pets and show animals for long periods of time, without rendering the hair greasy or stilf, Without flaking off or in any wise impairing the natural texture or the appearance on feel imparted to the coiflure by the preparation.

It is another object to provide a hair dressing preparation, the main operative ingredient of which is a natural product known to be existent in all living animal tissue, which is completely odorless, which is not subject to disarray of the coiifure, as for instance by static upon combing and brushing and which may be readily removed, if desired, by simple mild shampoo.

The invention in its broadest aspects, resides in the surprising discovery that dilute water solution of nucleic acid, when applied to tonsorial hair, imparts to the coiffure a natural well groomed appearance with a total absence of greasiness or stiffness, without flaking off, and Which preparation maintains the hair against disarray either due to static upon combing or brushing, or due to breeze, the coifiure giving no evidence by appearance, odor or otherwise of any cosmetic aid to its natural well groomed appearance.

2,960,44 Patented Nov. 15, 1960 The precise scientific explanation of this surprising effect is not understood by me, but is believed to be related to the fact that nucleic acids are relatively large elongated molecules containing many functional groups such as HO 0 NH2, OH, =0, P

and that such molecules can readily form oriented thin As conductive to a clearer understanding of this invention, it is noted that there are two general types of nucleic acids: Ribonucleic acid (RNA) consisting primarily of the basic ribonucleosides, adenosine, guanosine, cytosine, and uridine linked together through phosphate ester bridges; and deoxyribonucleic acid (NDA) in which the structure is broadly similar but the sugar deoxyribose replaces ribose in the nucleoside, and the nucleoside uridine is replaced by its methylated homologue thymidine.

RNA is found in all living tissue, chiefly in the c-ytoplasm and non-nuclear particulate forms within the cell and various forms of the same have been used for human nutrition, more especially as tonics, and fortherapy, particularly in European countries. RNA is recovered from ahnost any living cell, but yeast is a preferred commercial source by reason of its ready availability and low cost.

DNA is found principally in the nuclear structure of all livin cells and is most readily recovered on a commercial scale from certain animal glands, particularly the thymus gland, and from the sperm or milt of certain fish.

Each type of nucleic acid has characteristic physicochemical properties, but for the purposes of this invention they are considered interchangeable as both are highly effective in improving the manageability of tonsorial hair.

In one embodiment of this invention, a water solution containing by weight from 0.1 to 5% nucleic acid but preferably between 0.5 and 2% is prepared by neutralizing a water suspension of nucleic acid with an appropriate amount of dilute alkali, preferably NaOH or KOH until the nucleic acid is substantially dissolved and a pH between 5.0 and 9.0, preferably between 6.0 and 8.0 is obtained. To this may be added an approved preservative to prevent bacterial growth, and if desired, other ingredients such as perfumes and perfume fixing bases to enhance the product appeal. The solution is clarified by filtration and packaged as desired in any convenient manner.

More particularly, the aqueous solutions as thus far described, may be admixed with other conventional ingredients of known hair dressing preparations, to the exclusion of course of those ingredients that are objectionable as above pointed out, and that are replaced by the nucleic acid component of the essence of the present invention.

The amount of nucleic acid solution applied to the hair in any given case, will, of course, depend on the individual tonsorial condition, such as the thickness of growth, caliper, length and natural curl.

The solutions may be applied by aqueous spray, or by moistening the comb or brush and combing or brushing it into the hair, or with a moistened applicator pad or the hands. Preferably the hair should be set or otherwise manipulated into its desired final arrangement while still damp with the solution. After the solution has dried the hair retains its manageability and may be repeatedly redampened with water without diminishing the effectiveness of the dressing. The oriented thin film of the nucleic acid whidh forms around the otherwise rather inert hair filament of keratin, tends to dissipate or prevent the formation of the static electric charge commonly encountered when dry hair is combed, brushed or otherwise manipulated. It would appear, though the explanation is purely tentative, that this static dissipation is due to the functional groups available on the nucleate films.

Although it is believed that the foregoing complies with the statutory requirements, some specific examples are recited below by way of illustration and are not to be construed as limiting in any way the broad application of this invention.

Example I Commercial ribonucleic acid is wetted with approximately an equal weight of suitable alcohol, desirably ethyl alcohol, which may be of the relatively low priced denatured formula 3A.

The thus wetted mass is then slun'ied by gradual addition of about 20% by weight of tap water. To this suspension is added approximately 20% by weight of 2 N NaOH which causes all of the nucleic acid to dissolve and results in a pH of approximately 8.5. To this solution may be added about 20% by weight of a commercial aromatic essence, diluted with about 4 times the amount of alcohol used for the original wetting, such added alcohol serving as an aid in preserving. The entire solution is filered brilliant and then diluted with tap water in amount approximately five times the total volume of the mix and is then packaged, desirably in plastic spray bottles of 100 ml. or four fluid ounces each.

Male and female users of the preparation applied from such bottle all reported the following eflfects: (a) hair easier to manage after Washing; (b) hair stays much longer in place after combing or brushing; and (c) hair much less affected than normally by wind or strong drafts. The female users also reported that the hair held its set for long periods of time.

Example II Commercial sodium ribonucleate is made into a solution adjusted to pH 8.0 in manner similar to that described in Example I, in this case Without the need for wetting the mass with alcohol. To this is added enough sodium ethyl mercurithiosalicylate as preservative, to provide a final concentration of 1210000 and the solution is diluted with tap water as in Example I but in less amount to p'ovide substantially a 2% solution of nucleic acid. The solution is filtered brilliant and packaged in plastic spray bottles of approximately 100 ml. each. Users reported effects substantially the same as those of Example I, and no objectionable odor, though essence or perfume was not included in the preparation.

Example III Deoxyribonucleic acid from fish sperm is made up with tap water to substantially a concentration of 0.5% nucleic acid after previous adjustment to pH 6.5 with 2 N KOH and addition of .05 percent of chlorobutanol as a preservative. The solution is filtered brilliant and packaged in spray bottles. When applied by running a comb wetted with the solution through the hair until thehair was uniformly dampened, the coift'ure is found to stay in place without further attention for an entire day during normal activity. In this case also, users reported substantially the same utility of the preparation as set forth in Examples I and II.

Example IV Deoxyribonucleic acid is neutralized with 1 N NaOH to pH 7.5 and diluted substantially as in Example I to concentration of 0.1% of nucleic acid. Enough sorbic acidis added as preservative to make the solution concentration 0.1% withrespeot to this ingredient. The solution is filtered, packaged in spray bottles and tested on human subjects in a manner similar to the above examples with substantially the same results.

4 Example V A 5% solution of commercial ribonucleic acid preserved with 0.1% sodium benzoate is made up and tested in a similar manner as the other examples, and yields substantially the same results.

A typical formulation of hair dressing solution according to the invention may have the following composition by weight:

25 parts-3A alcohol.

7 .5 parts-sodium nucleate.

200 parts--water.

0.25 parts of polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate, one

commercial brand of which is sold under the trademark Tween 80.

1.8 parts 1 N NaOH.

1.0 part-dhlorobutanol.

0.5 parts-can de cologne concentrate.

Mixed thoroughly, filtered with filter aid and diluted to a total of 500 parts.

It will be understood from the foregoing examples that the particular dilutions and proportions of components of the preparation are by no means critical and may be varied widely, though the examples given are practical for commercial purposes in that the drying of the preparation as applied to the coiffure will not be difficult and the film of nucleic acid that remains on the hair filaments will in each case bring about the advantageous eliects above set forth.

While the invention was developed mainly for enhancing the attractiveness of tonsorial arrangements of humans and pets and show animals, it may be applicable also for the treatment of pile fabrics including fur garments and the like.

As many changes could be made in the above hair dressing preparation, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. The method of hair dressing which comprises applying to the coifinre a preparation containing nucleic acid as a principal ingredient thereof.

2. The method of hair dressing which comprises spraying upon the coilfure a preparation containing as a. principal ingredient, a nucleic acid selected from the group ribonucleic acid and deoxyribonucleic acid in aqueous solution.

3. The method of claim 2 in which the nucleic acid is present at a concentration of 0.1 to 5% by weight and the pH of the solution lies Within the range 5.0 and 9.0.

4. The method of claim 2 in which the nucleic acid is derived from yeast and is present at a concentration by weight of 0.5 to 2% and the pH lies within the range 6.0 to 8.0.

5. The method of claim 2 in which the nucleic acid is derived'from the group consisting of fish sperm and animal glands and is present at a concentration by weight 0.5 to 2% and the pH lies within the range 6.0 to 8.0.

References Cited in the file-of this patent and Sons, Inc, N.Y., pp. 1-3, 28 and 121-123.

Am. Professional Pharmacist, 20: 10, October 1954, pp.

Deakers: Drug and Cos. Ind., 40:2 February 1937, pp. 206-207.

Claims (1)

1. THE METHOD OF HAIR DRESSING WHICH COMPRISES APPLYING TO THE COIFFUER A PREPARATION CONTAINING NUCLEIC ACID AS A PRINCIPAL INGREDIENT THEREOF.