I would like to write today about amazing cosmetic company which deals with principles of corneotherapy, a german company Dermaviduals. Term corneotherapy has been used to describe ''therapy'' of stratum corneum- the uppest layer of epidermis. Epidermis is a first, outside layer of the skin and its function in a first place is to protect us from exogene (external) factors, like temperature, chemicals, allergens and microorganisms. It's protective function is achieved simply by the way it is structured. It consists of 4-5 layers, where the lowest ones consist of alive cells and the uppest ones consist of lacking water and organelles, dead cells. Structure of stratum corneum can be described by brick and mortar model, where cells are bricks and intercellular matrix can be described as keeping all of the bricks together mortar. In these intercellular matrix we can find fatty acids, lipids (cholesterol and sphingolipids like ceramides). All of the cells of stratum corneum are connected by corneodesmosomes- macromolecular protein structures similar to desomosomes of lower parts of epidermis. They keep all the cells of stratum corneum together and when degraded by different corneodesmosome proteases can lead to peeling off of upper layers of stratum corneum. Structure of epidermis makes it a very stable and keeps it unpermeable by most of the substances from outside world. Thanks to it's structure, lower parts of the skin stay moist- it protects our skin from transepidermal water loss (TEWL), simply saying- it protects our skin from drying out. Now, you can imagine how important epidermis is for protection of our organism. However, there is another layer which has to be mentioned- a hydrolipid layer of the skin. From the structural point of view, it can't be classified as a part of the skin tissue, as it doesn't contain cells. It is made of different substances secreted by skin glands, which are a first line of defence for our skin. We can find there lipids, fatty acids, amino acids, parts of peeled off cells and sweat. The main function of hydrolipid layer is to keep right pH of the skin and to protect the skin from water loss. Knowing the skin structure and physiology shows us how important is epidermis to keep our skin healthy. Corneotherapy focuses on epidermis as actually the most important part of the skin. Even small disturbances in epidermal structure can lead to very severe skin problems starting from very dry, dehydrates skin, through keratinization disorders, to occurrence of acne. Keeping it in a good shape helps keeping the whole skin in a good condition.

But how to keep it in a good shape at all? What to do if we know that most of active substances are unable to penetrate through epidermis or can permeate only to straum corneum? Many substances need to act in dermis to solve different problems. Such example could be vitamin C applied on the skin to stimulate fibroblasts for collagen and elastin production. We know that some of vitamin C derivatives, like fat-based ascorbyl palmitate can permeate deeper into the skin, however penetration to dermis can be be almost impossible. It could act as an antioxidant in upper layers of epidermis and inhibit thyrosinase enzyme and melanin production, however it's anti-aging properties in dermis won't be achived.

Here comes Dermaviduals into the game. Its main aim is to keep stratum corneum and hydrolipid layer in a good condition in a first place. Company found a way how to transport active substances even into deeper layers of the skin, namely dermis, where many of the skin problems have their beginning as well. They could achieve it by introduction of liposomal and nanoparticle encapsulated substances into their cosmetics. Liposomes and nanoparticles as a lipid based nanostructures can protect active substances from negative influence of environment and due to their skin-like structure, they can transport substances deep into the skin. Due to the cream formulations, all of this happens without disturbing epidermis. Transport of the active substances by liposomes can lead to disturbances in double layers of the membranes surrounding the cells. Creams produced by the company have so called derma membrane structure (DMS), what makes them to be epidermis friendly. Under the microscope we can see strong differences in DMS cream structure when we compare it to typical emulsifier based creams. Instead of small vesicles made of emulsifiers with closed inside water-solved substances, we can observe lipid double membranes arranged in layers, what indeed remains of the natural skin structure. All of this is due to phosphatidylcholine (lecithin), squalane, ceramides, olive oil and shea butter which have been used to create Dermaviduals cream formulations. Interestingly, it has been shown that use of liposome formulations can significantly enhance transepidermal water loss of the skin. Already one day after application of liposomal solution on the skin, skin moisture can drastically drop, what could indicate liposome-based disturbances in epidermal membrane structures. A vary good way to repair the problem is to apply DMS based cream, which actually in a very easy way can fill up disturbed places in cellular membranes leading to reparation of damage. Combination of DMS creams and liposomes can assure transport of substances into deep layers of the skin together with assuring of skin integrity. Moreover, liposomal structure can assure transport of the substances into different layers of the skin. Lisosomes can be unilamellar and multilamellar (combining one or many lipid double layers). The more membrane layers they have, the deeper they can transport active substances. See my entry about liposomes and the way of active substances transportation:

http://www.scienceandcosmetics.blog/2021/09/04/liposomes-and-transport-of-active-substances-into-deep-layers-of-the-skin/

Structure of liposome.

Now, coming back to Dermaviduals and their products 🙂 In their offer we can find products for every skin type. We have three categories of creams: DMS Cream for normal to fatty skin, DMS cream for normal and sensible skin and DMS cream for dry skin. All of them can be used on the skin alone, or can be mixed with different active substances to resolve many skin problems. Personalization of daily skin care routine is very important step in nowadays cosmetology. All of the ready skin care products are directed mostly only in one skin problem: dry skin, fatty skin, acne, hyperpigmentation, couperose, atopic dermatitis etc. However, our skin can suffer from many disorders at the same time. We can find dry, mature skin with hiperopigmentation and couperose. We can find skins which are prone to acne and are very sensitive. Skin problems can occur in different combination and important thing is to take care of all of them at the same time. With cosmetics from Dermaviduals we can create many different combination of cosmetics which are directed on different skin problems at the same time. Important is very careful diagnosis of the skin followed by choosing right active substances and creation of appropriate cosmetic 🙂 With products of this company we can create face masks, face creams, body lotions, eye creams, hand creams and many, many more. Cosmetics are very pleasant in use. They do not contain preservatives, fragrances, pigments, silicones, parabenes, paraffin and many other substances which we can find in most of the cosmetics on the market. They are skin friendly, natural and do not cause allergies. We can combine with each other around 40 active substances! This is a magic in cosmetology. Thanks to our knowledge we can act on the skin on different levels and fight different problems without damaging of the epidermis.

Dermaviduals cosmetic products - CM Glucan complex, DMS basis cream, cleansing milk and DMS hand cream.

I do not want to describe every single product, but I would like to give you short input about richness of active substances which we can use for creation of care products.

1. Plant extracts
Aloe vera extract (moisturizer with anti-inflammatory properties), Echinacea extract (antibakterial and anti-inflammatory properties), Green Tea extract (antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties), Hamamelis extract (anti-inflammatory properties).

2. Liposomal solutions
Anti-wrinkles serum with Acmella oleracea extract, Euphrasia (eyebright) serum (for sensitive eye area), Caffeine (stimulates blood circulation), ECGC (anti-aging properties, inhibits collagenase, perfect for very sensitive skin types), Hyaluronic acid and Hyaluronan NAG, Kigelia (antioxidant properties), NMF complex (moisturizers), Grape extract (moisturizing and antioxidative properties), vitamin B (vitamin B3, B5, B6, B7 – with anti-inflammatory and moisturizing properties), vitamin C (antioxidant, stimulates collagen biosynthesis and inhibits synthesis of melanin), whitening extracts (plant extracts influencing biosynthesis of melanin), zinc (influences many enzymes, like zinc/copper superoxide dismutase SOD, antioxidative and anti-inflammantory properties), Laminaria digitata extract (moisturizing, restoration of skin barrier).

3. Nanoparticles solution
Boswellia serrata (inhibits matalloproteinases involved in hyaluronic acid and collagen degradation, has anti-aging properties and plays a role in restoration of skin barrier), Coenzyme Q10 (antioxidant acting within the skin cells), Isoflavon serum (plant hormones, perfect solution for oestrogen deficiency), Kiwi oil (full of Omega fatty acids, has strong anti-inflammatory properties), Lein oil, Evening primrose oil (full of Omega fatty acids), Ruscus asculeatus (perfect choice for couperose skin type, strengthens capillaries), Vitamin A (as retinyl palmitate- strong anti-aging properties), Vitamin E (as tocopheryl acetate, antioxidant).

4. Monosubstances
CM Glucan (protection of the skin, restoration of skin microbiome), Hyaluronic acid (moisturizer), D-panthenol (anti-inflammatory)

5. Oils
Peach oil, Avocado oil, Jojoba oil, Macadamia oil, Grape oil, Wheat oil

(If you want to know something more about these active substances, please refer to my blog, where I described few of them 🙂 You can find them in English version of the website).

A very interesting is that, one can create not only personalized cosmetics, but many different personalized treatments in cosmetic studio. Company provides cabinet products as well. One can create perfectly suited for different patients procedures. Among cabinet products you we can find creams, cream masks, algae mask, massage creams, peeling creams, toner, enzyme peelings, cleansing milk, massage oil, cleansing gels, sonophoresis gels and many many more. Honestly, I am in love with this company and with the concept of corneotherapy. I have tried some of the products, and I was very happy about everything- cream texture, neutral smell, moisturizing properties and feeling left on my face! I am really happy, that we have on the market company which thinks so much about using skin friendly formulations and skin care personalization 🙂

Arkadiusz

To read:
Dr. Hans Lautenschläger, Korneotherapie - Bindeglied zwischen Dermatologie und Kosmetik, KOKO Kosmetikvertrieb GmbH & Co. KG