Does Argireline soften crow's feet? The 2013 placebo-controlled trial (Wang et al.)

Appraised by the Skingenetix research team. Medically reviewed by Dr Esther Bodde, Cosmetic & Medical Physician. Last reviewed 22 September 2026.

Verdict: in a double-blind trial of 60 adults, nearly half of those using 10% Argireline around the eyes were graded clearly improved after four weeks. On placebo, no one was. It is the strongest human evidence for Argireline: well designed, but small, short and graded mainly by eye.

Key facts

  • Design: randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel groups (3 to 1)
  • Participants: 60 Chinese adults aged 25 to 60 (50 women, 10 men): 45 on Argireline, 15 on placebo
  • What was applied: an oil-in-water emulsion with 10% Argireline, around the eyes, twice a day
  • Duration: 4 weeks
  • Comparator: the same emulsion without Argireline
  • Main measures: clinicians' 0–4 global improvement grade; silicone skin replicas analysed by imaging
  • Result: 22 of 45 (48.9%) graded 3 or 4, against 0 of 15 on placebo; skin roughness fell significantly (p < 0.01), with no significant change on placebo
  • Side effects: none reported, and no one dropped out
  • Funding and conflicts: the trial product was supplied by McEit, which markets Argireline in China; the authors declared no conflicts
  • Our evidence grade: A (randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled)
  • Source: Wang Y et al., American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2013 · PubMed 23417317

What the researchers did

Sixty adults with crow's feet were randomly assigned, three to one, to an emulsion containing 10% Argireline or to the same emulsion without it. Neither the participants nor the assessors knew who had which. Everyone applied their cream around the eyes twice a day for four weeks.

Results were measured in two ways. Clinicians graded each person's overall improvement on a five-point scale, from 0 (no change) to 4 (around 100% improved). Silicone moulds of the skin around the eyes were taken before and after, and analysed by an imaging system to give objective measures of skin roughness.

What they found

After four weeks, 22 of the 45 people using Argireline were graded 3 or 4, a clear visible improvement. None of the 15 on placebo were. The skin replicas agreed: every roughness measure fell significantly in the Argireline group, while the placebo group showed no significant change. No one reported a side effect, and no one dropped out.

The 48.9% figure you may see quoted is this share of people, 22 of 45. It is not a 48.9% reduction in wrinkle depth, a misreading that has since appeared in at least two published reviews.

How good is this evidence?

It is a strong design for a cosmetic trial: randomised, double-blind, with a genuine placebo made from the same base, and an objective measure alongside the clinicians' grades. Its limits are size and length. Fifteen people is a small placebo group, four weeks is short, and the main outcome is a visual grade rather than a measured wrinkle depth. The replica results compare each group before and after; the paper does not report a direct statistical test between the groups. The trial cream was supplied by the company that markets Argireline in China.

What it does not show

It tested Argireline in a simple emulsion, not our serum, and only around the eyes. It says nothing about forehead lines, about results beyond four weeks, or about people outside the age range studied. It also does not show that Argireline acts on the facial muscles themselves: that mechanism has only been shown in the laboratory.

How it compares with our serum

The trial used 10% Argireline, and so does the Skingenetix Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 Serum: the same level, applied the same way, twice a day. Our serum also contains other ingredients, so its results are not the trial's results.

Where this study fits

It is the strongest of the human trials on Argireline®. A second placebo-controlled trial found forehead roughness fell 7.4% by day 20 while it rose on placebo (Raikou et al., 2017). An independent 2023 split-face study, which added Argireline to a hyaluronic acid serum and measured wrinkles by camera, found no difference between the two sides (Henseler, 2023). Taken together, the evidence is positive, consistent in the controlled trials, and still small.

Reference

Wang Y, Wang M, Xiao S, Pan P, Li P, Huo J. The anti-wrinkle efficacy of argireline, a synthetic hexapeptide, in Chinese subjects: a randomized, placebo-controlled study. American Journal of Clinical Dermatology. 2013;14(2):147–153. doi:10.1007/s40257-013-0009-9. View on PubMed

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