Tocopherol acetate ([(2R)-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]-3,4-dihydrochromen-6-yl] acetate) is a natural product, a modified, hydrolysed form of vitamin E, which is difficult to oxidise and has the same colour.

"Tocopheryl acetate" is the same product, but synthetic, obtained industrially by a chemical process.

It comes in the form of a yellowish oil or as a white powder.

What it is used for and where

Medical

It is a powerful antioxidant, basically a vitamin E. (see Vitamin E), has both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and can reduce local bacterial growth, thereby promoting wound healing.  Liposoluble, it helps protect membrane lipids from peroxidation when taken orally. 

Cosmetics

It is used in cosmetic products for the skin, in toothpastes and has also been shown to reduce sunburn after exposure to UV rays. It also acts as a humectant when vitamin E is applied to the skin and neutralises free radicals(1).

Tocopherol acetate in topical gel form together with isotretinoin improved skin sensitivity and can be used as a non-irritating topical formulation for the treatment of acne (2).

In a preparation including some polysorbates, Tween 20, 40, 60, and 80, Tocopherol acetate has demonstrated in vitro antioxidant activity and efficacy in skin regeneration (3).

It has no contraindication for safety.

Tocopherol acetate studies

Typical optimal commercial product characteristics Tocopherol acetate oil

• Molecular Formula    C₃₁H₅₂O₃
• Molecular Formula   472.754 g/mol
• UNII   A7E6112E4N
• CAS   58-95-7  12741-00-3  133-80-2  1407-18-7  54-22-8  1406-70-8  26243-95-8  7695-91-2  52225-20-4
• EC Number: 231-710-0  257-757-7  200-405-4
• DSSTox Substance ID  DTXSID3021356    DTXSID1031096
• IUPAC  [(2R)-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]-3,4-dihydrochromen-6-yl] acetate
• InChI=1S/C31H52O3/c1-21(2)13-10-14-22(3)15-11-16-23(4)17-12-19-31(9)20-18-28-26(7)29(33-27(8)32)24(5)25(6)30(28)34-31/h21-23H,10-20H2,1-9H3/t22-,23-,31-/m1/s1 
• InChl Key      ZAKOWWREFLAJOT-CEFNRUSXSA-N
• SMILES   CC1=C(C(=C(C2=C1OC(CC2)(C)CCCC(C)CCCC(C)CCCC(C)C)C)OC(=O)C)C
• PubChem Substance ID 24900095    24899940
• MDL number MFCD00072052
• Beilstein Registry Number 97512
• eCl@ss    34058007
• ChEBI    32321
• NACRES  NA.79    NA.75
• RTECS   GP8280000

Synonyms: 

• Vitamin E acetate
• α-tocopherol acetate
• alpha-Tocopherol acetate
• Tocopheryl acetate
• Alfacol
• Natur-E granulate
• DL-alpha tocopheryl acetate
• (+-)-alpha-Tocopherol acetate
• Ecofrol
• 58-95-7
• Contopheron
• Tofaxin
• Econ
• Covitol 1360
• Vitamin Ealpha acetate
• alpha-Tocopheryl acetate
• DL-alpha-Tocopheryl acetate
• Vitamin E acetate, d-
• DL-alpha-Tocopherol acetate
• 2,5,7,8-Tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-6-cromanyl acetate, (+)-
• 6-Cromanol, 2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, (+)-
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, (2R-(2*(4R*,8R*)))-
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, [2R-[2R*(4R*,8R*)]]- 
• (R,R,R)-.alpha.-Tocopheryl acetate
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate
• 3,4-Dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-2H-benzopyran-6-yl acetate
• (2R)-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]-3,4-dihydro-2H-chromen-6-yl acetate
• 6-Chromanol, 2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, (+)-
• (2R)-3,4-Dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]-2H-1-benzopyran-6-ol 6-Acetate
• 6-Chromanol, 2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate
• (2R*(4R*,8R*))-(1)-3,4-Dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-2H-benzopyran-6-yl acetate
• DL-alpha-Tocopherol acetate, analytical standard
• DL-alpha-Tocopherol acetate, EP/USP/FCC grade
• [(2R)-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]chroman-6-yl] acetate
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-((4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, 6-acetate, (2R)-
• 3,4-Dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-2H-b- enzopyran-6-ol, acetate
• [2R-[2R*(4R,8R*)]]-3,4-Dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-2H-1-benzopyran-6-ol acetate
• [(2R)-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-[(4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl]-3,4-dihydrochromen-6-yl] acetate
• [2R*(4R*,8R*)]-()-3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-(4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-2H-benzopyran-6-yl acetate
• 1406-70-8
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-((4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, (2R)-
• 2H-1-Benzopyran-6-ol, 3,4-dihydro-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-2-((4R,8R)-4,8,12-trimethyltridecyl)-, acetate, (2R)-rel-
• Ephynal acetate
• Tokoferol acetate
• D-alpha-tocopherol acetate
• Tocopherex
• Evipherol
• Fertilvit
• Tocophrin
• Erevit
• Gevex
• Juvela
• Combinal E
• Tocopheryl acetate
• D-ALPHA-TOCOPHERYL ACETATE
• Epsilan-M
• E-Toplex
• E-Ferol
• Endo E Dompe
• Spondyvit
• (+)-alpha-Tocopherol acetate
• Copherol 1250
• Covitol 1100

References___________________________________________________

(1) Teo BS, Basri M, Zakaria MR, Salleh AB, Rahman RN, Rahman MB. A potential tocopherol acetate loaded palm oil esters-in-water nanoemulsions for nanocosmeceuticals. J Nanobiotechnology. 2010 Feb 23;8:4. doi: 10.1186/1477-3155-8-4.

(2) Gupta S, Wairkar S, Bhatt LK. Isotretinoin and α-tocopherol acetate-loaded solid lipid nanoparticle topical gel for the treatment of acne. J Microencapsul. 2020 Dec;37(8):557-565. doi: 10.1080/02652048.2020.1823499. 

(3) Caddeo C, Manca ML, Peris JE, Usach I, Diez-Sales O, Matos M, Fernàndez-Busquets X, Fadda AM, Manconi M. Tocopherol-loaded transfersomes: In vitro antioxidant activity and efficacy in skin regeneration. Int J Pharm. 2018 Nov 15;55

Best studies on Tocopherol acetate:

Radioprotective and Apoptotic Properties of a Combination of α-Tocopherol Acetate and Ascorbic Acid.
Vasil'eva IN, Bespalov VG, Baranenko DA.
Bull Exp Biol Med. 2016 Jun;161(2):248-51. doi: 10.1007/s10517-016-3388-0. Epub 2016 Jul 7.

Topical use of α-tocopherol acetate in delayed wound healing.
Stanizzi A, Bottoni M, Torresetti M, Campanati A, Di Benedetto G.
Int Wound J. 2015 Dec;12(6):746-7. doi: 10.1111/iwj.12265. Epub 2014 Apr 3.

Development of phospholipid nanoparticles encapsulating 3-O-cetyl ascorbic acid and tocopherol acetate (TA-Cassome) for improving their skin accumulation.
Fushimi T, Uchino T, Miyazaki Y, Hatta I, Asano M, Fujino H, Suzuki R, Fujimori S, Kamiya D, Kagawa Y.
Int J Pharm. 2018 Sep 5;548(1):192-205. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2018.06.030. Epub 2018 Jun 15.

Immune homeostasis impairment in acute carbon tetrachloride intoxicated rats corrected by administration of tocopherol acetate and unithiol.
Zabrodskiĭ PF, Gromov MS, Masliakov VV.
Eksp Klin Farmakol. 2015;78(1):30-3

Associated use of silicone-vitamin E gauzes and α-tocopherol acetate oil in healing of skin graft donor sites.
Stanizzi A, Bottoni M, Tartaglione C, Bolletta E, Benedetto GD.
Int Wound J. 2017 Oct;14(5):813-817. doi: 10.1111/iwj.12707. Epub 2017 Jan 23.

Enhanced Brain Delivery of Dimethyl Fumarate Employing Tocopherol-Acetate-Based Nanolipidic Carriers: Evidence from Pharmacokinetic, Biodistribution, and Cellular Uptake Studies.
Kumar P, Sharma G, Kumar R, Malik R, Singh B, Katare OP, Raza K.
ACS Chem Neurosci. 2017 Apr 19;8(4):860-865. doi: 10.1021/acschemneuro.6b00428. Epub 2017 Jan 3.

Nasal mucosa healing after endoscopic sinus surgery in chronic rhinosinusitis of elderly patients: role of topic alpha-tocopherol acetate.
Testa D, Marcuccio G, Panin G, Bianco A, Tafuri D, Thyrion FZ, Nunziata M, Piombino P, Guerra G, Motta G.
Aging Clin Exp Res. 2017 Feb;29(Suppl 1):191-195. doi: 10.1007/s40520-016-0647-x. Epub 2016 Nov 25.

A Comparison of Natural (D-α-tocopherol) and Synthetic (DL-α-tocopherol Acetate) Vitamin E Supplementation on the Growth Performance, Meat Quality and Oxidative Status of Broilers.
Cheng K, Niu Y, Zheng XC, Zhang H, Chen YP, Zhang M, Huang XX, Zhang LL, Zhou YM, Wang T.
Asian-Australas J Anim Sci. 2016 May;29(5):681-8. doi: 10.5713/ajas.15.0819. Epub 2016 Jan 18.

Vitamin E bioaccessibility: influence of carrier oil type on digestion and release of emulsified α-tocopherol acetate.
Yang Y, McClements DJ.
Food Chem. 2013 Nov 1;141(1):473-81. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2013.03.033. Epub 2013 Mar 20.