- Access
- Supplement
- Cost / month
- ≈ €4–27
- researchers' estimate; no listing to price
Builds over days or weeks of regular use rather than with each dose.
r/30PlusSkinCare· · 8 upvotesOriginal ↗
I think the syn-ake peptide gave better results on my skin - it regenerated beautifully and was definitely firmer and softer to the touch.
PositiveTopical
compared three peptides at night; preferred SYN-AKE, copper peptides did nothing for her
r/30PlusSkinCare· · 8 upvotesOriginal ↗
for me the two peptides that i absolutely swear by are Argireline and Syn-Ake ... been using products with these ingredients for years and i dont have wrinkles
PositiveTopical
always paired with argireline (favourite product Revision Revox Line Relaxer), so not attributable to SYN-AKE alone
r/AsianBeauty· · 3 upvotesOriginal ↗
*Tosowoong Syn-ake Natural Pure Essence: harmless but didn't do anything *Secret Key Syn-Ake Anti-Wrinkle Ampoule: didn't do anything
NothingTopical · anti-aging
of three SYN-AKE products only Giverny's cream was 'ok' (rich, not brightening); two named SYN-AKE products did nothing. Her favourite in the comment, Mizon S-Venom, is not counted because its active is not identifiable
- Users report
- Reports are scattered and mostly old: the ingredient peaked in Korean skincare around 2013-2016 (It's Skin Power 10 SYN-AKE, Secret Key, Tosowoong, Dermal sheet masks), and today it mostly sits unseen inside multi-peptide serums such as The Ordinary's Buffet, where nobody can credit it. About 60% of identifiable users describe something positive, but it is usually soft: plumper, smoother skin after a sheet mask, a Rodial serum that 'keeps the wrinkles stay put for 5 hours', a Holika Holika spot treatment that tightened under-eye lines over a month. A third used whole products and saw nothing. A few felt tingling or a numb, cool face (one washed it off in alarm), which matches the marketing story but is harmless. One enthusiastic 2025 post about a branded gel was flagged by other users as an ad and is left out of the score. Felt nothing: ~28% of reports (5/18), more in product-recommendation threads.
- Best effects
- Softer expression lines for hours after application (temporary 'mini-Botox' feel) · plumper, smoother skin (largely the hydrating vehicle, especially sheet masks) · gradual tightening of fine under-eye lines in a few
- Downsides
- No visible effect for about a third of users · tingling or a numb feeling in some, unsettling though harmless · occasional breakouts from rich creams (vehicle, not the peptide) · almost never disclosed at a known concentration outside DIY powder
- Evidence
- Human RCTs — one supplier-run placebo-controlled study (DSM, 57 women aged 50-65, 4% of the raw material for 4 weeks) found less frown-line area and length on the forehead; the other human data test it only inside multi-active serums (a 2026 L'Oréal-affiliated serum with argireline, gluconolactone and niacinamide in 50 + 42 people). No independent trial of the peptide alone, and no published skin-penetration data
- Caveat
- SYN-AKE mimics Waglerin-1, a temple-viper venom peptide that blocks the muscle's nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, but the cosmetic is a dipeptide used at a few percent of a dilute raw material, and there is no evidence it reaches facial muscle from the skin surface; the numbness some describe is a skin sensation, not paralysis. The supplier's headline numbers (up to 52% fewer forehead wrinkles in 28 days) come from unpublished in-house work. Most reports are of whole K-beauty products, often sheet masks, whose hydration alone smooths fine lines for a day or two.
- Typical use
- Supplier guidance is 1-4% of the SYN-AKE raw material in a finished product, applied once or twice daily to expression lines; finished products rarely state the amount.
- Getting it
- Over-the-counter cosmetic: Korean SYN-AKE serums, creams and sheet masks (It's Skin, Secret Key, Purebess, Dermal), Rodial Glamoxy, and many multi-peptide serums (The Ordinary Buffet, DNA Code Magic Firming Serum). Raw SYN-AKE powder is sold to DIY formulators.
- Stacked with
- Argireline: Same goal by a different step (SNARE assembly versus the muscle's acetylcholine receptor); usually combined in one serum. · Matrixyl: Common partner in multi-peptide serums.