Skin equivalent model could replace need for clinical trials in the future

Speaking at the Microbiota event held in Paris, chief scientific officer, Richard Bojar, told CosmeticsDesign-Europe.com that the development of the skin equivalent could potentially replace clinical trials, although he added this was “probably a long way off”.​

Evocutis, which focuses on advanced laboratory and clinical evaluations of skin care products for the cosmetic markets, developed its animal-replacement technology as it emulates living skin and is a high-value research and product testing tool for the cosmetic and healthcare industries.

“LabSkin provides a unique living skin surface which is validated for microbial applications and can simultaneously provide information on irritation, penetration, barrier function and skin structure. This makes it a valuable tool for the development of innovative products,”​ he said.

Bojar explained that the technology, made of two types of cell, is suitable for testing any kind of application.

“It’s suitable for soluble compounds… you can put a solution on it, a suspension, you can put a full formulation on… because it’s a strong piece of skin; you can rub it with your finger, or apply cream to it as you would to your face.”​