Our technology
Understanding lipid peroxides
Lipid peroxides are produced in skin from its natural oils, and accumulate as we age. While it used to be thought they are produced only in response UV light, we now know that all sunlight, including visible and infra-red light, common atmospheric pollutants, such as ozone and nitrogen dioxide, and tobacco smoke also increase their production.
Lipid peroxides are extremely important because they have many harmful effects on cell membranes, DNA, enzymes, and proteins, and are known to contribute to the aging changes in skin like wrinkles and thinning, as well as to skin cancer, acne, and sunburn. Skin cancers have been increasing worldwide for many years despite UV screens. They are now the most common form of cancer, affecting one in five Americans in their lifetime. Acne affects about 10% of people worldwide, and 80% of Americans.
And yet, no ingredients for skincare products target these toxic chemicals.
At Kutanios, we are developing revolutionary science-based skincare ingredients that are the outcome of three discoveries by one of the company’s founders, Norman Miller.
His first great discovery of the role of HDL (good cholesterol) in protecting against heart disease was reported in an article that became the most cited in The Lancet’s 200-year history.
He later discovered that HDL particles sequester lipid peroxides in blood with high affinity, thereby preventing their toxic effects.
He also pioneered the use of lymph vessel cannulation to study fat transport in tissue fluid, and found that the concentration of lipid peroxides in fluid from skin is more than ten times that in blood.
The Kutanios solution
After being applied to the skin, LIPOXERASE™ molecules bind lipid peroxides, rather like magnets attract iron filings, and also stick to the surfaces of the skin cells.
This stops the lipid peroxides attacking cell membranes, enzymes, DNA, and the proteins collagen and elastin that give skin its strength and elasticity.
When the skin cells are eventually shed by natural processes, they take the LIPOXERASE™ and lipid peroxide molecules with them.
