Spanish version - catalan version
DEVELOPED
THE FIRST INTELLIGENT SUNSCREEN
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Researchers from the IQS and Ferrer have discovered a progressive sunscreen that would help to reduce the risk of contracting skin cancer, melanoma and other skin conditions associated with an excess of exposure to the sun.
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Applied to the skin, the compound gradually increases its protection factor the greater the time of exposure to sunlight.
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The discovery enables the development of sunscreen products that will protect us all day long, irrespective of the skin type, the season, or the time of day we are exposed to the sun.
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The intelligent sunscreen means greater safety for the user and an important ecological benefit. Its innovative technology of encapsulation in an inert material prevents the main ingredients from being released into the environment or onto the skin.
Barcelona,
26th March 2010.-
Researchers from the Photochemistry Laboratory of the IQS and the multinational company Ferrer have developed a progressive intelligent sunscreen that increases its protection factor automatically as the time of exposure to the sun increases
In contrast to traditional sunscreens with fixed protection factors, the intelligent sunscreen does not limit the intensity with which the rays of the sun reach the skin, but instead limits the total light dose received over the day, irrespective of the time it has been exposed to the sun.
The new technology uses sunlight itself to produce photo-protective compounds from the new active ingredients developed, so that the solar radiation itself is what regulates the degree of conversion of these ingredients, thereby evening the tan in the different zones of the body and acting in practice as an on-demand applicator.
Santi Nonell, head researcher of the project and director of the Photochemistry Laboratory of the IQS, explains that “it is a question of balancing the need to protect yourself from the sun with the social desire to be tanned, and making this tan safe is where progressive sunscreens come into play”.
For Nonell, this discovery will help to prevent skin conditions associated with an abuse of exposure to the sun, such as cancer and melanoma. Contrary to what would be desirable, not everybody uses the right protection factor, limits the time of exposure to the sun, or avoids the hours in the middle of the day when it comes to tanning.
Ricardo Miralles, promoter and head of the project at Ferrer, highlights the environmental benefits of this technology: “in contrast to conventional sunscreens, the main components are encapsulated in an inert substance, which provides the new technology with greater safety for the user and an important ecological benefit, as the release of the active ingredients into the environment is prevented.”
The results of this joint research will be published in the April 2010 issue of the journal “Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences”, devoted to solar protection. Nonell adds that “we are thrilled by the interest with which the scientific community has received our discovery, selected by the journal to illustrate the cover of the special issue devoted to sunscreens”.
The success of the research has been possible thanks to the collaboration between the multinational Ferrer, which includes businesses from the chemical, pharmaceutical and foodstuffs sectors, and the century-old university centre of Sarrià (a district of Barcelona), the IQS, where collaboration with industry is a tradition deeply rooted in its culture
As Miralles explains, "the collaboration established with the IQS sets an important precedent in the university-business model that works very well, as demonstrated by the results obtained. We are seeking to extend this model as broadly as possible within the technological platform developed together with the IQS".
The development of these new sun filters has enjoyed important support from the chemical-pharmaceutical research teams that Ferrer has in Sant Cugat, near Barcelona. The pharmaceutical and cosmetic cluster of Catalonia was recently constituted in this town in the Vallès district, together with Rubí and Cerdanyola, to stimulate innovation in this sector.
