Human skin equivalents are an excellent tool to study the effect of moisturizers on the water distribution in the stratum corneum.

In this study, the mode of action of moisturizers on the level of water in the stratum corneum was studied using cryo-scanning electron microscopy. As model for dry skin, we used human skin equivalents (HSEs) generated at 93% or 60% relative humidity (RH). During the generation of the HSEs, the moisturizers were applied during a period of maximal 2 weeks.