# SYN-AKE (dipeptide diaminobutyroyl benzylamide diacetate)

Synthetic 'snake venom' peptide for expression lines; mostly a K-beauty sheet-mask ingredient, mild at best.

- Page: https://peprank.xyz/peptides/syn-ake
- Category: Skin & hair (Supplement)
- Also known as: DABBA; H-beta-Ala-Pro-Dab-NH-benzyl diacetate; 'snake venom' peptide (synthetic mimic of Waglerin-1 from temple viper venom); SYN-AKE (Pentapharm trade name, now DSM-Firmenich)
- Routes: Topical
- Safety tier: Strict: Caution · Balanced: Clean · Evidence only: Clean
- Risk axes (0 none to 3 severe): Seen harm 0, Mechanism 1, Data gap 2, Silent harm 0, Product 0
- Positive: 57% of 18 graded reports glowing or positive, shrunk toward the 49% all-report average by 8 reports' weight
- Rank: #4 of 23 supplements
- Graded reports: 18 (Positive 11, Mixed 1, Nothing 5, Negative 1)
- 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
- Access: Supplement
- Onset: Some feel a cool or numb tightening within minutes; any line softening in 1-4 weeks
- Lasts: Hours per application; nothing persists after stopping
- Cost per month: ≈ €4–27 (researchers' estimate)
- Updated: 2026-10-30

## What 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.

**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

**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.)

## Risk profile

- **Seen harm 0/3:** No serious adverse events in the published studies (a 57-person supplier trial, a 92-person serum study) or in first-hand reports, despite mass-market use in Korean and Western cosmetics since about 2006. The reported reactions are tingling, a numb or cool feeling and occasional breakouts, none serious.
- **Mechanism 1/3:** Designed as a reversible antagonist of the muscle nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, modelled on the viper-venom peptide Waglerin-1; a curare-like effect would need it to reach muscle in quantity, which a dipeptide used at a few percent of a dilute raw material on intact skin is not shown to do. The concern is speculative, hence 1 rather than 0.
- **Data gap 2/3:** Small human studies only: one supplier-run placebo-controlled trial of 57 women over four weeks, plus multi-active serum studies; no CIR safety assessment and no long-term or penetration data published.
- **Silent harm 0/3:** The harms actually reported (tingling, numbness, breakouts) are felt at once and stop when the product is washed off or dropped; no delayed harm is plausible at cosmetic exposure.
- **Product 0/3:** Bought as finished over-the-counter cosmetics (K-beauty serums and masks, multi-peptide serums); a minority buy raw powder for DIY mixing, which would score 2 for dosing guesswork.
- **Never if:** known allergy to a SYN-AKE product; keep off broken or freshly microneedled skin, where nothing is known about deeper exposure; pregnancy and breastfeeding (no reproductive data, though systemic exposure from a cosmetic is expected to be negligible)

## Top reports

- Positive, skin-hair: “I think the syn-ake peptide gave better results on my skin - it regenerated beautifully and was definitely firmer and softer to the touch.” — [r/30PlusSkinCare](https://www.reddit.com/r/30PlusSkinCare/comments/1fp7o93/lets_talk_peptides/lowx5lw/)
- Positive, skin-hair: “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” — [r/30PlusSkinCare](https://www.reddit.com/r/30PlusSkinCare/comments/1fp7o93/lets_talk_peptides/loxiiek/)
- Positive, skin-hair: “The SYN-AKE Power 10 Effector by It's Skin is really cheap and I liked the way it smoothed and tightened skin.” — [r/AsianBeauty](https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/46arcn/anyone_here_that_can_recommend_a_synake_product/d042e19/)
- Positive, skin-hair, Purebess cream with 4% SYN-AKE raw material: “I have not experienced any reactions with SYN-AKE - but no overnight miracles, either.” — [r/AsianBeauty](https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/352l3u/whats_your_favorite_synake_product/cr16atv/)
- Positive, skin-hair: “I have actually the famous syn-ake brands- Rodial Glamoxy snake serum but keep it mind that it is western and AB are way too 'gentle' . It does keep the wrinkles stay put for 5 hours but I will say the effect is just temporary. More like temporary botox.” — [r/AsianBeauty](https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/4dods2/experiences_with_synake_products/d1t02iy/)

## Studies

- [Gempeler et al., Facial Expression Wrinkles and Their Relaxation by a Synthetic Peptide (Int J Pept Res Ther 2020)](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10989-020-10146-z) (controlled, n=57, 2020): Women aged 50-65 split into placebo and 4% DABBA cream groups for four weeks: the active group had significantly less wrinkle area and length on the forehead when frowning (p < 0.05) by image analysis and expert grading. Run by the supplier (DSM).
- [Zhu et al., The effect of a serum containing acetyl hexapeptide-8, dipeptide diaminobutyroyl benzylamide diacetate and gluconolactone on skin biomarkers, wrinkles and skin texture (Int J Cosmet Sci 2026)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41668671/) (open-label, n=92, 2026): Serum with argireline, SYN-AKE, gluconolactone, niacinamide and kelp extract: static-wrinkle clinical scores improved 35-69% over 12 weeks (n=50) and dynamic wrinkles 10-13% (n=42). No placebo arm is described for the clinical studies, and it is a multi-active product, so SYN-AKE's share is unknown.

## Sources

- [Cosmetics & Toiletries: Antidote for Aging, Synthetic Viper Venom Smooths Over a Cross-cultural Concern (supplier study summary)](https://www.cosmeticsandtoiletries.com/testing/efficacy/article/21836847/antidote-for-aging-synthetic-viper-venom-smooths-over-a-crosscultural-concern)
- [Skin Inc: Is Snake Venom Just 'Snake Oil?' (Pentapharm's 4% SYN-AKE claims)](https://www.skininc.com/science/ingredients/article/21880727/is-snake-venom-just-snake-oil)
- [r/AsianBeauty: Anyone here that can recommend a SYN-AKE product?](https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/46arcn/anyone_here_that_can_recommend_a_synake_product/)