Since 2013, The L‘Oreal Group has banned testing its cosmetics on animals in any of its laboratories. To compensate, they rely on a predictive model that utilises bits of skin grown in a lab ““ or as they like to call it, ““ “Reconstructed Human Epidermis” ““ to make sure their products are safe.They are looking to change things up, though, with new and improved techniques to lower costs and boost efficiency. Chief among those are the new venture with 3D bioprinting company Organovo to create the real thing“¦ or at least as real as 3D printed skin can be.
It is still in its planning phase and only tests are being run at this stage, but should it come to market, the cosmetics company will retain exclusive rights to the samples for use in non-prescription skin care products.
L‘Oreal has actually been using skin “˜grown‘ in labs since the 1980‘s. They also receive bits of donated skin from plastic surgeries. The new process will hasten the process considerably, though, thanks to Organovo’s NovoGen Bioprinting Platform.
Which other uses of 3D printing do you find particularly strange? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: Organovo
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