Nipastat is the brand name for a mixture of

parabens Parabens are a class of widely used preservatives in cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. Chemically, they are a series of parahydroxybenzoates or esters of parahydroxybenzoic acid (also known as 4-hydroxybenzoic acid). Parabens are effective p ...

(parahydroxybenzoates) by

Clariant Clariant AG is a Swiss multinational speciality chemicals company, formed in 1995 as a spin-off from Sandoz. The company is focused on four business areas: care chemicals (consumer and industrial); catalysis; natural resources (oil & mining, mine ...

, a chemicals company. Parabens are a type of compound used as a

preservative A preservative is a substance or a chemical that is added to products such as food products, beverages, pharmaceutical drugs, paints, biological samples, cosmetics, wood, and many other products to prevent decomposition by microbial growth or by ...

in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and food. Nipastat is a white powder at room temperature, but is typically dissolved into a liquid product. Nipastat acts to prevent the growth of

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal seco ...

, and

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constitut ...

. Nipastat is a mixture of five common parabens:

methylparaben Methylparaben, also methyl paraben, one of the parabens, is a preservative with the chemical formula CH3(C6H4(OH)COO). It is the methyl ester of ''p''-hydroxybenzoic acid. Natural occurrences Methylparaben serves as a pheromone for a variety ...

(50-60%),

butylparaben Butylparaben, or butyl ''p''-hydroxybenzoate, is an organic compound with the formula . It is a white solid that is soluble in organic solvents. It has proven to be a highly successful antimicrobial preservative in cosmetics. It is also used in ...

(12-17%),

ethylparaben Ethylparaben (ethyl ''para''-hydroxybenzoate) is the ethyl ester of ''p''-hydroxybenzoic acid. Its formula is HO-C6H4-CO-O-CH2CH3. It is a member of the class of compounds known as parabens. It is used as an antifungal preservative. As a food ...

, (13-18%)

propylparaben Propylparaben, the ''n''-propyl ester of ''p''-hydroxybenzoic acid, occurs as a natural substance found in many plants and some insects, although it is manufactured synthetically for use in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and foods. It is a member ...

(6-9%), and isobutylparaben (6-9%). When Nipastat is added to a product, the recommended final weight of Nipastat is between 0.05% and 0.3% of the total weight. Nipastat is stable at a range of pHs between 4 and 8. "Product Fact Sheet NIPASTAT®"
Clariant International LTD, May 2013

Uses

Nipastat has been approved for use in Europe, the United States, and Japan. These are the only locations where it is currently in use. It is frequently added to pharmaceutical creams, lotions and ointments, as well as consumer products including lotions, cosmetics, shampoo, and food.Ash M, Ash I ''Handbook of Preservatives'' p. 166.

References

Parabens Swedish inventions {{science-stub