Top research innovations at IFSCC 2016

This year’s edition of the International Federation of the Society of Cosmetics Chemists (IFSCC)’s congress took place in Florida earlier this month, and we dug out some of the most exciting innovations presented.

The show placed a particular focus on innovating for the future, inviting delegates to look ‘beyond dreams into new frontiers’.

The 29th edition of the annual event ran from 31 October to 2 November, with advances from suppliers and beauty brands were all on show, and here, we pick out just a few.

DSM: moisture mapping

Being able to demonstrate the efficacy of products in a visual way is always a top demand for the industry, and DSM has opened the door for a new generation of doing just that when it comes to skin hydration.

The ingredients supplier presented its new methodology that allows the industry to visualise the effectiveness of skin moisturisation. Lead scientist Rainer Voegeli presented the advancement at the show.

The company has also just released its ‘Five Actives - Five Actions’ solution for protecting the skin against environmental pollution, tapping into the rising popularity of the protection trend in personal care.

The approach has built on recent scientific advances to determine how the company’s leading actives can be applied to improve skin comfort, protection, color, quality, and perfection,” DSM explains.

Shiseido: sweat glands and skin ageing

Shiseido was in the spotlight at the event as the winner of the Poster Award, for its paper entitled ‘Discovery of novel skin ageing mechanism: dermal cavitation’.

The paper was picked out from over 420 other distinguished offerings, with its focus on identifying the sweat gland as a breakthrough target for anti-ageing skin care.

Shiseido had previously discovered the cavitation of the dermal layer and that people with more advanced “cavitation of the dermal layer” experience greater facial sagging - however, until this research paper, the cause of this remained unclear.

The company has found that the shrinkage of sweat glands plays a key role in the cavitation of the skin, with great potential for the research now to be applied in the development of new products.

L’Oréal: quinoa extract a sustainable exfoliator

As the industry hunts for alternatives to microplastics in the face of increasingly widespread bans, leading players are stepping up to the challenge.

L’Oréal presented its sustainable quinoa extract made from the waste husk of the ever-popular quinoa plant, increasingly in demand as a food source.

Quinoa husk was previously considered to be waste and therefore it wasn’t used. Thus, the sourcing strategy of L’Oréal and its partners has created a new opportunity for the cultivation of this plant,” the company explains.

Quinoa husk contains saponins and polyphenols which make it an interesting renewable cosmetic ingredient. L’Oréal researchers have proven exfoliating properties of the quinoa husk extract, and a green chemistry based extraction method has been developed by Chimex, a L'Oréal subsidiary which specialises in designing and developing eco-responsible processes.