Smart-Pore™ : A disruptive technology in the field of cosmetic testing
Smart-Pore™ enables you to see artificial skin from another angle. Our transparent biomimetic pore can be integrated to our proprietary SOD4 technology in order to reproduce the perspiration mechanism of the human body on demand and in a controlled manner.
Microfactory obtained the European Commission Seal of Excellence during the SME Instrument Phase 2 call in June 2019!
SMART-PORE™ IS EVOLVING
Microfactory is developing new applications for our technology Smart-Pore™. If you are interested in knowing what our unique transparent biomimetic pore can do to help you understant de impact of sweat and sebum on your products. After processing the results of this study, we will organize a breakfast discussion around this theme; do not forget to leave your email if you wish to be invited.
Smart-Pore™ : A disruptive technology in the field of cosmetic testing.
Smart-Pore™ enables you to see artificial skin from another angle. Our transparent biomimetic pore can be integrated to our proprietary SOD4 technology in order to reproduce the perspiration mechanism of the human body on demand and in a controlled manner.
SMART-PORE™ IS EVOLVING
Microfactory is developing new applications for our technology Smart-Pore™. If you are interested in knowing what our unique transparent biomimetic pore can do to help you understant de impact of sweat and sebum on your products. After processing the results of this study, we will organize a breakfast discussion around this theme; do not forget to leave your email if you wish to be invited.
The first transparent artificial human pore allowing vision from under the skin
Less and less animal testing
Cosmetics are applied on the skin for protection, hygiene or make-up. Thus, developing the formulas require numerous tests to optimize the proportions and ingredients. Animal testing was banned in 2013 in Europe, limiting the cosmetic laboratories to two testing techniques: Using human cohorts, or reconstructed skin samples.
Human testing: long, costy and lacking precision
Testing on human cohorts is obviously the closest equivalent to real-life usage of the products. However, they are costly, administratively complex and take weeks to be completed, so they are only used in the latter stages of development. Furthermore, the differences between individuals or different environments give rise to a notable imprecision in the results, which makes customizing the formulas for different user groups complex.
The reconstructed skin: a model lacking crucial mechanisms
The alternative to human testing is to use reconstructed human epidermis, also called 3D skin models. This technology provides more homogeneous samples and allow for a better control over several parameters, however they lack two important mechanisms : sweating, and sebum production. People have on average 10 to 16 millions sweat glands which produce in total several liters of sweat daily. For cosmetics, evaluating the impact of this phenomenon is capital.
What is the impact of sweat and sebum production on the sun protection factor of sunscreen ? On the color and homogeneity of foundations ? How much can you lower the proportion of aluminium salts in anti-perspirants without noticeably impacting their efficiency?
Smart-Pore™ : a novel solution
Microfactory presents SOD4 and Smart-Pore™, two innovative technologies able to answer these questions. SOD4 is an instrument able to control minute amounts of fluidic flows with unparalleled precision in the range corresponding to human skin secretions. Smart-Pore™ is the first transparent artificial pore that mimics sudoral pores of the human skin.
Combined, these two technologies enable you to directly see the impact of your cosmetic products on sweat pores from under the skin, or conversely the gradual impact sweat has on the properties of your product.
The first transparent artificial human pore allowing vision from under the skin
Less and less animal testing
Cosmetics are applied on the skin for protection, hygiene or make-up. Thus, developing the formulas require numerous tests to optimize the proportions and ingredients. Animal testing was banned in 2013 in Europe, limiting the cosmetic laboratories to two testing techniques: Using human cohorts, or reconstructed skin samples.
Human testing: long, costly and lacking precision
Testing on human cohorts is obviously the closest equivalent to real-life usage of the products. However, they are costly, administratively complex and take weeks to be completed, so they are only used in the later stages of development. Furthermore, the differences between individuals or different environments give rise to a notable imprecision in the results, which makes customizing the formulas for different user groups complex.
The reconstructed skin: a model lacking crucial mechanisms
The alternative to human testing is to use reconstructed human epidermis, also called 3D skin models. This technology provides more homogeneous samples and allow for a better control over several parameters, however they lack two important mechanisms : sweating, and sebum production. People have on average 10 to 16 millions sweat glands which produce in total several liters of sweat daily. For cosmetics, evaluating the impact of this phenomenon is capital.
What is the impact of sweat and sebum production on the sun protection factor of sunscreen ? On the color and homogeneity of foundations ? How much can you lower the proportion of aluminium salts in anti-perspirants without noticeably impacting their efficiency ?
Smart-Pore™ : a novel solution
Microfactory presents SOD4 and Smart-Pore™, two innovative technologies able to answer these questions. SOD4 is an instrument able to control minute amounts of fluidic flows with unparalleled precision in the range corresponding to human skin secretions. Smart-Pore™ is the first transparent artificial pore that mimics sudoral pores of the human skin.
Combined, these two technologies enable you to directly see the impact of your cosmetic products on sweat pores from under the skin, or conversely the gradual impact sweat has on the properties of your product.
Microfactory won the innovation award for Test and Analysis for its technologies SOD4 and Smart-Pore™ during the 2018 edition of Cosmetics 360
At Cosmetics 360, more than 70 companies and start-ups were in competition in the Test&Analysis category; Microfactory won the award for its disruptives technologies reproducing for the first time the mechanism of sweating in vitro.
Microfactory obtained the European Commission Seal of Excellence during the SME Instrument Phase 2 call in June 2019!
SOD4 technology applied to anti-perspirants
Virtually every anti-perspirant on the market uses aluminium salts as their active ingredient to form clots in the pores, preventing sweating. In recent years an increasing amount of evidence points to their probable nocivity, which is why the European Scientific Community gnagna lower their concentration to 0.6%. The concentration of aluminium salts in marketed products averaging around 15%, this would translate into a 25-fold decrease in concentration, with the corresponding decrease in product efficiency.
This situation drove Microfactory to develop Smart-Pore™, the artificial pore dediced to a fast and quantitative screening of anti-perspirant formulations.
Testing one formulation with smart-Pore takes less than a day and offers results more reproducibles than what gravimetry offers after one month’s wait and thirty test subjects.
With SOD4, Microfactory’s goal is to replace cumbersome and time-consuming in vivo testing with the fast, quantitative and precise data requried to develop new cosmetic products formulations.
Events:
Due to the situation in Europe, Microfactory’s participation in trade fairs is suspended until further notice, but let’s stay connected !
Events :
Due to the situation in Europe, Microfactory’s participation in trade fairs is suspended until further notice, but let’s stay connected !
Due to the situation in Europe, Microfactory’s participation in trade fairs is suspended until further notice, but let’s stay connected !