I could put WHAT on my face?

I’ll just be straight with you. I do not understand all these overwhelming details related to skincare and I am not a dermatologist. I’ve scrolled through TikTok for at least a primer of advice, and saw a post about Polydeoxyribonucleotide (PDRN) being a super powerful molecule for skin. The person on my phone screen said something along the lines of “and you can find it in salmon sperm!”

Of course it would be in salmon sperm.

I got into skincare a few years ago when I noticed new sunspots and wrinkles emerging. I was concerned because I grew up RARELY using sunscreen, even though my parents told me to, and I regret it (you were right Mama 😉). I was concerned because I started getting sunburns on my face, which never used to happen, so I needed to lock in. So yeah, my skin has definitely aged maybe more than I’d like, but I’m not fishing (haha, get it?).

I started doing very surface level research on skincare. Caffeine serum for brightening, retinol for skin regeneration, but not too concentrated or it can damage your skin. Toner is important right after washing your face but before all other serums. Use certain products in the morning, and others at night. It’s all too much!

But not really. I think if we can understand what certain ingredients do, then we can all become naturals at understanding how the products work and why they should be specifically timed. But lets start with a specific ingredient gaining a lot of traction, called PDRN.

Let’s break it down. Poly (multiple), deoxyribose (ribose is a five-carbon sugar with one less oxygen atom (deoxy)), nucleotide (the fundamental building block of nucleic acids). Basically it’s poly-DNA. Many fragments of DNA. These small DNA fragments act as a stimulator for adenosine A2A receptors ¹ on dermal (skin) fibroblasts (located in the middle layer of the skin)². Salmon sperm has highly concentrated PDRN, but I wonder if it can be derived from other sources as well.

So yes, PDRN has been shown to boost cell growth, collagen synthesis, and elastin production¹,²,³, but specifically in the dermis. However, I’m not sure how effective it is when put just on the surface of our skin, the epidermis. This is also my confusion when a product says it can boost collagen production because collagen fibers are primarily found in the dermis as well. The studies I’ve read thus far on PDRN talk about the scientist injecting PDRN into the peritoneal cavity¹ in mice, which is the abdomen, which is a common injection site for drug delivery studies, but I don’t think it can be used as a proxy for topical skincare applications.

If you’re going to get collagen or PDRN injections, then yeah, you’ll probably notice some improvements. Maybe it would be good to use PDRN after some skin treatments that leave your skin barrier vulnerable and exposed (like microneedling). But just putting the peptides on your skin as part of a skin routine? I’m not so sure.

So when I found that a company called Quasi is advertising salmon DNA PDRN and hydrolyzed collagen facial sheet masks that promote “DNA-Level Cellular Repair,” I’m a bit concerned. Especially because four masks cost $80⁵ (but on sale now for $30 🙃). Or Mikura charging $70⁶ for a 30mL container of topical “Salmon DNA Rejuvinating Ampoule.”

I think Rejuran is one of the more famous companies using PDRN in their products, claiming exactly what I also found that by injecting and “delivering polynucleotides (PN) directly into the dermis (the middle layer of skin), skin cells receive the signal to regenerate and repair themselves.⁷” Technically PN and PDRN are slightly different (PN is larger), but I think similar enough that we can compare them here.

The overarching question is this: does topical PDRN actually penetrate deep enough to do what many skincare companies are claiming? Although it may not penetrate the skin, can it be used synergistically to improve the efficacy of other products? I would trust that PDRN helps with skin hydration, for example.

What I find most fascinating is that PDRN isn't just a skincare trend but it also has real clinical applications. Research has shown it can accelerate wound healing, particularly in diabetic patients who often struggle with chronic wounds due to impaired circulation and immune response³ . That's not marketing. That's medicine. And it actually makes the case that PDRN is a genuinely powerful molecule, just maybe not in the form your favorite influencer is selling you.

I’ve also found data that shows PDRN is helpful in dentistry, to promote bone growth⁴ and improvement in bone graft vascularization (forming or support blood vessel establishment through organs and tissues)! Like WHAT! That’s insane!

So where do I land on this? Cautiously optimistic, but skeptical of the hype. Could topical PDRN work synergistically with other products in your routine, like maybe helping with hydration or creating a better environment for other ingredients to do their job? Possibly. Am I convinced it's penetrating your dermis and rebuilding your collagen from a serum? Not really.

If you want the real benefits of PDRN, injections are probably where the science actually supports it, just like it does clinically. The topical version feels more like a marketing story built around a legitimately interesting molecule.

That's kind of the theme of skincare in general. The science is real. The claims are often... excited.

Photo by The Cleveland Museum of Art on Unsplash