SenzaGen continues its collaboration with the American Research Institute for Fragrance Materials (RIFM), in the area of in vitro photosensitization testing and fragrance safety. The new grant provided by RIFM marks another milestone in the partnership and will add SEK 1.6 million to SenzaGen’s sales. The testing will be performed at SenzaGen’s GLP-certified laboratory in Lund in 2023.
RIFM is a well-respected international scientific institute that, through an independent expert panel and a comprehensive library of chemicals, ensures the safe use of fragrance ingredients in consumer products. The collaboration between SenzaGen and RIFM commenced in 2021 and has gradually expanded, incorporating more ingredients with the aim of promoting animal-free testing and fragrance safety. In this project, SenzaGen will utilize its proprietary, unique method, GARD®skin Dose-Response, to assess fragrance ingredients from RIFM’s reference library. The method has been adapted to identify the levels at which substances can induce skin allergies when exposed to sunlight (photosensitization).
“Our collaboration with RIFM continues to evolve into the field of photosensitization. Through this collaboration, we look forward to advancing non-animal scientific innovation and enhancing consumer safety. RIFM’s scientific evaluations are a highly important reference for the industry and contribute to building up the knowledge base of our effective and accurate GARD® technology”, says Peter Nählstedt, President and CEO of SenzaGen.
“We are excited to continue our work with SenzaGen on the GARD®skin Dose Response assay for photosensitization. We have expanded our pool of reference chemicals to gain a deeper understanding of how the assay might help us identify potential photoallergens and even to distinguish photoirritants from photoallergens”, says Gretchen Ritacco, Principal Scientist, Phototoxicology at RIFM.
The GARD®skin Dose-Response test method provides quantitative information and replaces animal testing when assessing the concentration at which skin-sensitizing substances can be used without causing skin allergies. In the RIFM project, the test materials are exposed to sunlight in one step to identify their photosensitization, providing companies in industries including cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and chemicals a crucial basis for prioritization and decision-making in research and development. The test is an expanded application domain of GARD®skin, and it is the first genomics-based test of its kind on the market.
