Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has announced a new collaboration with Serpin Pharma, a biotechnology company specializing in anti-inflammatory technologies. The partnership highlights ELC’s commitment to promoting skincare innovation by integrating pharmaceutical research into cosmetic formulations.
We spoke with ELC’s Global Innovation and EVP Carl Haney, R&D’s EVP. “At Estee Lauder companies, promoting strategic partnerships from across diverse industries like Pharma has been a key approach to driving transformational innovation,” Haney said.
“The company’s collaboration with Serpin Pharma is consistent with ELC’s commitment to advances in anti-aging and anti-inflammatory science, which is crucial in addressing skin health and appearance.”
Uses biotechnology for longevity of the skin
According to an ELC press release, “The exclusive partnership focuses on ELC’s transformational product innovation by applying insights from Serpinphama’s 20-year anti-inflammatory research.
Serpin Pharma has identified an important part of the superfamily of proteins called Serpins (serine protease inhibitors) that enhance the body’s natural ability to heal cells experiencing inflammation.
“Together, companies are investigating how this innovative technology that leverages the body’s innate immune response can be used to address skin irritation, aging and sensitivity,” the press release said.
Benefits of Serpin Technology
Serpin Pharma’s proprietary Serpin Technology distinguishes it from existing anti-inflammatory components by targeting specific proteins found in all skin cells, called Serpins (serine protease inhibitors). “This protein plays an important role in controlling inflammation, helping the skin heal, protect itself, and maintaining health,” explained Haney.
“By affecting the skin cells’ response,” he continued. [which] It is a comprehensive and effective approach to soothe and rejuvenate the skin. ”
Ongoing research on ELC highlights the role of SERPIN technology in mitigating “inflammation,” a process in which sustained low levels of inflammation accelerate visible skin aging.
“SERPIN technology supports the skin’s natural ability to counter this process and recover,” Haney said. “It works to reduce redness, discoloration and other visible signs of damage,” he added.
Challenges when translating pharma research into cosmetics
This collaboration comes as biotech-driven skincare solutions are gaining attention in the industry. However, Haney acknowledged the challenge of integrating pharmaceutical research into cosmetic formulations.
“As we leverage the Pharma Biotech platform to identify groundbreaking ingredients in cosmetics, we can face several challenges in product development,” he said.
“We need to recognize that the biomimetic components identified on the pharma platform are originally designed for other uses and applications, and to ensure that the components discovered through the use of the platform are safe and suitable for topical skin applications,” he explained.
Ultimately, he summed up “the main challenge is to design formulas to keep these ingredients stable and effective,” and in doing so “we need to meet all regulatory standards and global registration requirements to ensure compliance.”
Fast innovation under the vision of “rethinking beauty”
The collaboration between ELC and Serpin Pharma is consistent with the company’s recently launched “Beauty Reimagined” strategic vision. According to an ELC press release, the company is “a gradual change in innovation by partnering with biotech companies across the sector to commercialize groundbreaking innovations and applying cutting-edge technology to the development of skincare solutions for consumers.”
Haney further emphasizes the importance of the partnership, saying, “Combining established expertise in skincare science with SERPIN’s cutting-edge research can enable the rapid development of new peptide technologies that can ultimately be utilized in our products, making skin aging and stimulation visible.”
He said, “As a decades-long leader in developing high-performance skincare products using biotechnology, I see this inter-industry collaboration as a meaningful way to accelerate the creation of innovative products that enhance the consumer experience.”
