Scientists correct wrinkles with ‘second skin’

A new lab-created “second skin” could
help correct wrinkles… researchers
demonstrated that the silicone-based
polymer could be applied as a thin
coating that matches the elastic and
mechanical properties of young, healthy
skin. When tested on humans, the
material helped reshape under-eye bags
and enhanced skin hydration.
Depleted elasticity of the skin and
overexposure to harmful ultraviolet
rays causes wrinkles, but scientists say
a new lab-created “second skin” could
help correct this damage.
Researchers at Massachusetts Institute
for Technology (MIT), Massachusetts
General Hospital (MGH), Olivo Labs,
United States (U.S.) and Jennifer
Aniston’s beauty company Living Proof
reported in a recently released research
paper that the material has the
potential to tighten, smooth and protect
skin from harmful Ultra Violet (UV)
rays. With more development, their
invention also could act as a delivery
mechanism for medication, and help
treat skin ailments like eczema and
other types of dermatitis.
“It’s an invisible layer that can provide
a barrier, provide cosmetic
improvement, and potentially deliver a
drug locally to the area that’s being
treated. Those three things together
could really make it ideal for use in
humans,” study author Daniel
Anderson, an associate professor in
MIT’s Department of Chemical
Engineering and a member of MIT’s
Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer
Research and Institute for Medical
Engineering and Science (IMES), said in
a news release.
In their paper, published Monday in the
journal Nature Materials, researchers
demonstrated that the silicone-based
polymer could be applied as a thin
coating that matches the elastic and
mechanical properties of young, healthy
skin. When tested on humans, the
material helped reshape under-eye bags
and enhanced skin hydration.
According to the release, scientists’
invention has been about 10 years in
the making. Their research included
creating a library of more than 100
possible polymers that contained the
chemical structure siloxane, a chain of
alternating atoms of silicon and oxygen.
Those polymers were organized into a
network known as cross-linked polymer
layer (XPL). Study authors tested the
materials to identify one that would
mimic the skin’s mechanical and optical
properties.
“Creating a material that behaves like
skin is very difficult,” study author
Barbara Gilchrest, a dermatologist at
MGH, said in the release. “Many people
have tried to do this, and the materials
that have been available up until this
have not had the properties of being
flexible, comfortable, nonirritating, and
able to conform to the movement of
the skin and return to its original
shape.”
The XPL researchers created easily
returned to its original state after being
stretched more than 250 percent.
According to the release, natural skin
can be stretched about 180 percent. Its
elasticity outperformed two other
wound dressings currently used on
skin: silicone gel sheets and
polyurethane films.
Scientists conducted multiple studies to
test the XPL’s safety and effectiveness.
In one study, they found the material
helped tighten under-eye bags for 24
hours, and in another, they found the
material helped prevent water loss
from skin better than high-end
commercial moisturizer 24 hours after
application. None of the study
participants reported irritation from
wearing the XPL.
“I think it has great potential for both
cosmetic and noncosmetic applications,
especially if you could incorporate
antimicrobial agents or medications,”
Thahn Nga Tran, a dermatologist and
instructor at Harvard Medical School,
who was not involved in the research,
said in the release