Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2023-04-18 Origin: Site
In recent years, the synthetic biology track is hot. Synthetic biology is regarded as the world's "third biotechnology revolution" after the "discovery of the DNA double helix" and the "Human Genome Project".
From the perspective of the cosmetics market, consumer trends are constantly iterating in the direction of "efficacy" and "green", and it has been proven that improving product quality and efficacy is the effective means for brands to occupy consumers' minds. Synthetic biology helps many industries to establish a low-carbon economy with low energy consumption, low pollution and low emissions, and provides strong support for future raw materials and product innovation, which can effectively break through the technical barriers and raw material restrictions of beauty products.
Helping cosmetic ingredients transform into new life
In the last three years, biomedical research and development has been making breakthroughs, synthetic biology research has been developing rapidly, advanced industrial biotechnology has been iteratively upgraded, promoting the development of bio-industry as an important breakthrough in redefining green products and production methods and opening up the next generation of bio-economy, synthetic biology has become one of the key areas in the layout of science and technology industries in the world's major developed economies.
The application of biotechnology can reduce the energy consumption of industrial processes by 15%-80%, reduce water pollution by 50%-90%, and reduce air pollution by 50%-90%. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), it is estimated that by 2030, industrial biotechnology will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1 billion to 2.5 billion annually.
Synthetic biology is outstanding in breaking through the limitations of raw materials, improving the efficiency of synthesis, enhancing activity and safety, and fundamentally solving the problem of high pollution in the production of raw materials, making the production process safer and greener, and contributing to the sustainable development of enterprises, so it has the significant advantages of cost reduction and efficiency increase, green and environmental protection. Synthetic biology uses redesign and "assembly" to reconfigure the material world, which is also an important way to efficiently develop new cosmetic ingredients.
In 2014, for example, ergothioneine was included in the list of used cosmetic ingredients by the then State Food and Drug Administration, and many cosmetic brands use ergothioneine as an important whitening and anti-aging ingredient, and especially in recent years, its attention and application have been expanding.
It was first isolated from ergot fungus (Claviceps purpurea) in 1909 and later found to exist in human tissues and organs, with the highest content in red blood cells, liver and kidneys, and is a naturally occurring cell protector and antioxidant in the human body.
But ergothioneine is not simple to make, it is found in natural plants such as mushrooms and grains, and is a naturally rare amino acid. It is usually extracted by chemical synthesis and biological fermentation, and due to the immaturity of the technology, the yield is not high, so ergothioneine is labeled as "expensive". It is understood that the raw material price of ergothioneine was as high as 10,000 yuan per gram.
From the point of view of extraction, the technical barrier of chemical synthesis is the complexity of the process, and easy to produce toxic impurities; biological fermentation also has low fermentation efficiency, impurities, purification difficulties and other problems. Compared with traditional chemical synthesis or biological fermentation, ergothioneine produced by synthetic biology method has the advantages of high synthetic efficiency, good selectivity, high purity and low cost.
As an ingredient that has long been frequently used by big brands, its powerful antioxidant efficacy, natural safety and stability, coupled with the support of synthetic biology technology, make it possible to achieve mass production. It is true that innovation in cosmetics lies to a large extent in the breakthrough and innovation of raw materials, however, along with the development and rise of synthetic biotechnology, the research and development of new raw materials for domestic cosmetics will also enter a whole new stage. The cost of synthetic biologics, represented by ergot sulfide, will continue to decrease and the purity will continue to improve, and many ingredients will move from high-end to affordable, thus being used by more brands and bringing benefits to consumers.
OnenessPoint is committed to leveraging the technological advantages of synthetic biology to bring high-quality, low-cost ergothioneine to the market.