Recently a great deal of attention has been paid to the prevention of photo-aging, many kinds of UVA, UVB-absorbents and micro fine powders have been developed as new cosmetic raw materials. We have recently developed a new type of melanin, “BIO-MELANIN” which is produced by microorganism Streptomyces sp.
(1) BIO-MELANIN is obtained at high purity without protein contamination after simple purification techniques.
(2) BIO-MELANIN has been shown to be very safe in the following tests; acute lethal toxicity test, photocontact sensitivity test and human closed patch test.
(3) BIO-MELANIN showed protective effects on cultured mouse fibroblast cells (L929) against UVB irradiation.
(4) BIO-MELANIN is alkaline soluble natural UV-absorber and is suited for use in new cosmetic powders and BIO-MELANIN-coated powders (TiO2, sericite, mica etc.).
(5) This type of cosmetic powder (BIO-MELANIN-coated powder) has dual function and reflection and can be used in the production of FOUNDATION, LIPCREAM, EYE LINER and SKIN CARE PRODUCTS.
(6) We found the sun cut cream containing BIO-MELANIN-coated powder had a high SPF value.