Reconstructed human skin instead of animal experiments

Human skin grown in the laboratory will replace animals in the research of cosmetic materials

Dr. Revital Lavie, "Galileo" magazine

Thin rubber-like skin surfaces about one centimeter in diameter, stretched over flasks, are samples of episkin, an innovative substitute for animal experiments. Episkin is regenerated human skin, used for experiments to test the effect of cosmetic substances on the skin.
In December 2006, the European Union enacted a law instructing to check by 2019, whether more than ten thousand substances used in cosmetics irritate the skin. Another law states that experiments on animals for the purposes of developing cosmetics will be prohibited until 2009. Therefore, a conflict has arisen: on the one hand, experiments on animals for cosmetic purposes will be prohibited, and on the other hand, it is necessary to test a very large amount of materials. As a result, cosmetic companies are urgently looking for a substitute for animals for experiments. When the regenerated human skin is marketed in Europe, it will therefore be in great demand in the market.
At the L'Oréal laboratories in Lyon, the researchers grow layers of skin on a collagen substrate, using skin cells called keratinocytes. These cells are obtained from remnants left over from cosmetic breast surgeries. The researchers can check the safety of the cosmetic materials by applying the product to the skin. The cells that died as a result of the exposure to the preparation are identified by the researchers using a yellow chemical called MTT, which turns blue in the presence of living tissue. In independent tests it became clear that in some cases regenerated skin can predict how human skin will react to the product more accurately than animals.
This method is superior to using animals in other respects as well: the regenerated skin can be aged by exposing it to multiple ultraviolet radiation. Adding melanocytes can demonstrate skin that can tan. By using donor cells from different ethnicities, it is possible to create a spectrum of skin colors and use them to test the effectiveness of sunscreens for skin of different colors.
Restored human skin is therefore good for the animals, but humans will also benefit greatly from it, as the safety test will be more accurate and specific for human skin.
Chris Flower (Flower) from the Association for Cosmetic Perfumes and Perfumes in London, supports the move. According to him, it is possible that in the future regenerated human skin could be used not only to test new shampoos and cosmetics, but also in medical experiments, such as the study of rare genetic diseases that affect "moon children", who are hypersensitive to sunlight, or the production of skin substitutes to treat large burns and ulcers .