Hydrogen-Rich Water Prevents Dehydration-Induced Cellular Oxidative Stress and Cell Death in Human Skin Keratinocytes
Xiao L, Miwa N. · Hydrogen. 2022;3(1):20–31.
What kind of evidence is this?
Preclinical
Controlled in-vitro study
Skin, wound and aging research
Other forms
Not reported in this record.
Not reported in this record.
Methods at a glance
HaCaT human keratinocyte cell cultures subjected to controlled air drying.
Cell-culture experiments; the article reports independent assays rather than one consolidated participant or animal sample.
2-hour pretreatment followed by 5–20 minutes of air drying.
Cells were pretreated for 2 hours with hydrogen-water-prepared medium, then air-dried for 5, 10 or 20 minutes at 22–24°C and 35–40% humidity.
H₂ dissolved in cell-culture medium — H₂ only, not Brown's gas.
Hydrogen-water DMEM contained approximately 460 µg/L dissolved H₂. Source water measured 880±38 ppb at 24°C; boiled/cooled source water measured 420±25 ppb.
Not applicable — cell-culture medium, not gas inhalation.
No O₂ was co-delivered as an intervention.
Distilled/deionized-water-prepared medium.
Outcomes and reported result
Cell viability and nuclear/cytoplasmic reactive-oxygen-species fluorescence after dehydration stress.
After 20 minutes of drying, viability was 27.6% in control medium and 61.1% after hydrogen-rich-medium pretreatment (p<0.001). Five-minute drying ROS signals were also lower with hydrogen-rich medium.
The free publisher full article, methods, figures and conflict statement were checked.
A reported association, difference or mechanism is not automatically a clinical benefit. Null findings, outcome type, study design and precision all matter.
Cautions and applicability
In-vitro evidence only. HaCaT cell results do not establish a skin treatment effect in people. The authors reported no conflict of interest.
Cultured human keratinocytes under the reported dehydration protocol.
Not reported in this record.
Not reported in this record.
Not reported in this record.
No single-study GRADE certainty rating is assigned. Certainty is assessed by important outcome across a complete eligible evidence set, not by attaching a final grade to one source.
Sources and record status
OpenAlex ID: W4225080080 · DOI: 10.3390/hydrogen3010005
Open-access full article on MDPI.
MDPI publisher full article; full-text extraction checked 8 August 2026.
2026-08-10