Process development for a sustainable and unique cosmeceutical ingredient

消费者非常担心化妆品污染和合成成分的使用，这可能会导致皮肤刺激或过敏反应。然而，使用未经精炼的天然成分并不总是能达到所需的效果。或者，生物技术活性成分是一个具有强大潜力的新市场，因为这些成分可以具有很高的活性功效，并且来自清洁和可持续的来源。此外，随着新冠肺炎加强对全球卫生体系和经济的控制，全球制药和生物技术行业将发挥至关重要的作用。埃托品是一种环状氨基酸，它的功能是为大量耐盐细菌提供渗透平衡。其固有性质之一是作为酶、DNA-蛋白质复合体和核酸的高效稳定剂。为了利用这些属性，各个行业已经开始将埃托品作为保健和化妆品产品中的一种新的活性成分进行营销。埃托品已被证明能够保护皮肤免受干燥、紫外线照射，并对与慢性阻塞性肺疾病相关的肺部炎症产生积极影响。这种生物技术成分是由微生物合成的最有价值的产品之一，在化妆品和制药行业零售。位于诺丁汉的一家以研发为基础的初创公司Activatec将与诺丁汉大学合作开展一个为期9个月的项目，利用微生物联盟开发一种创新技术来生产埃托品。他们将用多升发酵系统来验证这项技术，该系统将生产小批量的最终产品，并产生数据，以便进行大规模生产。这一创新将提供一种具有成本效益的贵重化合物的制造工艺，可以配制成护肤品应用。此外，还将对该技术的潜力进行技术和商业经济评估。该项目将推动一种生物技术成分首次在英国商业化，满足市场需求，并减少化妆品行业的碳足迹。随着这种依托品在护肤品行业的成功应用，将进一步开拓市场，即制药和医疗保健。此外，该项目还将在此次新冠肺炎疫情爆发期间促进活跃度，为当地诺丁汉郡地区创造新的商机、可持续的就业机会和增长。

Consumers are greatly concerned about cosmetic pollution and the use of synthetic ingredients which can cause skin irritation or allergic reactions. However, the use of unrefined natural ingredients does not always give the efficacies required. Alternatively, biotech active ingredients are a new market with strong potential, as these ingredients can have a high activity efficacy and are derived from clean and sustainable sources. Moreover, as COVID-19 tightens its grip on health systems and economies around the world,?the?global pharma and biotech sectors?have a vital?role to play.Ectoine is a cyclic amino acid, whose function provides osmotic balance to a wide number of halotolerant bacteria. One of its inherent properties is as a highly effective stabilizer of enzymes, DNA-protein complexes and nucleic acids. In an attempt to harness these attributes, various industries have begun to market Ectoine as a novel active component in health care and cosmetics products. Ectoine has been demonstrated as being capable of protecting the skin from dryness, UV irradiation and positively influence lung inflammation associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This biotech ingredient is one of the most valuable products synthesized by microorganisms, retailing in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry.Activatec, an R&D-based start-up in Nottingham, will collaborate in a 9-months project with the University of Nottingham to develop an innovative technology to produce Ectoine by utilising a microbial consortium. They will validate the technology with a multi-litre fermentation system, which will produce small batches of the end-product and generate data to allow the development of large-scale production. This innovation will provide a cost-effective manufacturing process of the valuable compound which can be formulated into skincare applications. Alongside this, the potential of the technology both technically and business-economically will be evaluated.This project will be a driver towards the commercialisation of a biotech ingredient for the first time in the UK that will meet market requirements and reduce the carbon footprint of the cosmetic industry. Following the successful application of this Ectoine in the skincare industry further markets will be explored, i.e. pharma and healthcare. Furthermore, this project will boost Activatec as a business during this COVID-19 outbreak creating new business opportunities, sustainable jobs and growth in the local Nottinghamshire area.