Laboratory Services

SKIN IRRITATION

In vitro dermatological assays offer a safe, economical alternative to human as well as animal assays for the screening of raw materials and final formulations. IIVS offers several assays for skin irritation. Tissue constructs and cell cultures are available for studying the effects of diverse chemicals and formulations. Testing may be conducted for: irritancy, corrosivity, collagen synthesis, viral studies, anti-inflammatory assays, cytotoxicity, and other specifically designed bioassays.

 Topical Application Assay for Dermal Irritation

• EpiDerm™ (MatTek Corporation) is a three-dimensional, differentiated, metabolically active tissue construct having stratified dermal and epidermal layers, and a functional stratum corneum. Since the tissue is grown at the air-medium interface, test articles may be applied in final concentration, directly onto the stratum corneum; thus simulating the actual use of these products on the skin. Endpoints that may be tested in the assay include cytotoxicity and pro-inflammatory mediator (cytokine) release. Cytokine synthesis/release studies may be used to evaluate inflammatory potential and anti-inflammatory activity of the test material.

Human Keratinocyte / Neutral Red Uptake Bioassay

• Normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK) have the advantages of: possessing the ability to metabolize many chemicals, providing potential for metabolic activation; growing in serum-free medium, minimizing the potential of test article inactivation; and being epithelial in origin and derived from human skin. Individual ingredients, often the active components, that are mild in irritancy are tested in this assay. It is possible to conduct cell proliferation studies and a range of inflammatory/anti-inflammatory studies.

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