Demonstration testing of "my own" beauty
products
PALO
ALTO, Calif., July 9, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- KOSÉ Corporation (Headquarters: Chuo-ku,
Tokyo; President: Kazutoshi Kobayashi), I Peace, Inc.
(Headquarters: Palo Alto,
California, USA; Founder & CEO: Koji Tanabe), and Reju, Inc. (Headquarters:
Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO:
Yurie Kamiya) have agreed to enter a
strategic partnership to develop and provide personalized beauty
products*1 containing iPSF (iPS cell extract), a unique
ingredient derived from each customers' own iPS cells*2.
The personalized beauty products will not only contain iPSF but
will be formulated in the optimal dosage form and texture to suit
each customer's preferences and sensibilities. This innovative
approach ensures that customers can enjoy the beauty products
meticulously tailored to their needs and desires. Before the end of
2024, the partnership plans to commence demonstration testing of
the technical and business aspects of these beauty products,
collaborating with medical institutions in Japan.
*1 Personalized beauty
products resulting from this project will be provided through
medical institutions under medical supervision, rather than being
provided as cosmetics as defined by the Japanese Pharmaceuticals
and Medical Devices Act.
|
*2 iPS cells are a type
of stem cell that can proliferate almost indefinitely and
differentiate into any type of cell in the various tissues and
organs, making them promising for regenerative medicine
applications.
|
Background to the strategic partnership
KOSÉ, a leading company in the business of beauty in
Japan as a provider of cosmetics
and other products, has joined forces with I Peace, a biotech
company working in the field of iPS cell technology, and Reju, a
supplier of iPSF. This strategic partnership is driven by a shared
commitment to delivering personalized beauty solutions that are
tailored to the unique individuality of each customer in a society
that respects diversity.
With a focus on the 3G principals of Global, Gender, and
Generation, KOSÉ is working on a mission to deliver the value of
beauty to as many people as possible by targeting new customer
segments, beyond adult women. KOSÉ is committed to providing a wide
range of cosmetic products tailored to meet the unique needs of
diverse customers including different functions and usability, by
leveraging its extensive expertise and strength in cosmetics
development and brand creation. To further expand its value
propositions beyond the realm of beauty, KOSÉ has been exploring
the technical and business aspects in the areas of health and cure,
elevating its value propositions to holistic well-being
concept.
I Peace, on the other hand, is engaged in a number of businesses
including the supply of clinical-grade iPS cells to pharmaceutical
companies and cell and gene therapy developers worldwide.
Additionally, I Peace offers iPS cell banking services for
individuals, enabling them to store their own iPS cells for
personalized disease treatment in the future and other
applications. Through the groundbreaking technologies, I Peace
has significantly reduced the cost of manufacturing iPS cells,
paving the way for a future where individuals will be able to make
use of their own iPS cells.
With a separate technical partnership with I Peace, Reju is
aiming to apply cutting-edge iPS cell component extraction and
refining technologies to the areas of beauty and health. Reju is
researching and verifying the potential contributions of iPSF, a
unique iPS cell extract produced through these advanced
technologies, to cell rejuvenation and longevity. The unique iPSF
components are expected to have wide-ranging applications across
various beauty and healthcare areas.
Recognizing the potential of delivering truly personalized
beauty solutions tailored to each customer by combining their
expertise in beauty and iPS cell technology, these three companies
have come together to form this new strategic partnership.
Outline of the initiative
This initiative aims to provide customers with a wide range of
beauty products uniquely tailored to each individual. The process
begins with the iPS cells generation from somatic cells which are
collected from the customer's own blood. In the process, the
extracts of their own iPS cells are taken and stored so the
customers can enjoy beauty products containing extracts of their
own iPS cells. Because iPS cells are rejuvenated in the cell
generation process, customers can benefit from the cellular
activity levels similar to their younger selves. Moreover, the use
of iPSF derived from the customers' own cells ensures high
biocompatibility, minimizing the risk of adverse reactions. In this
initiative, I Peace will generate, culture, and
manage iPS cells from an individual's somatic cells using its
extensive experience in operating personal iPS cell banking
services employing its latest biotechnology and stringent safety
protocols to ensure the highest quality. Utilizing
its technical partnership with I Peace, Reju will manufacture
and supply iPSF for the beauty products.
The beauty products offered through this initiative will be
tailored to customers' preferences not only in components
but also in a dosage form. For example, the personalized
beauty products will be available in various forms like gels for
those who prefer a fresh feeling, or creams for those concerned
about dryness. This versatility ensures each customer's unique
desires for usability, feel, and the added value are met, in
alignment with the sensibilities they may have. KOSÉ, having
developed many different cosmetics in pursuit of ever-better
usability, will be in charge of providing the personalized beauty
products to customers' satisfaction.
This initiative will appoint Japanese medical institutions who
will take care of collecting somatic cells from customers,
preparing iPSF-based formulations, and other relevant work, with
the aim to commence demonstrating testing before the end of
2024.
Roles of each party
KOSÉ:
Manufacture and sale of preparations personalized to individual
preferences
I
Peace:
Generation, cultivation, and management of customers' own iPS
cells
Reju:
Supply of iPSF (iPS cell extract)
Overview of each party
KOSÉ Corporation
Representative: Kazutoshi
Kobayashi, President & CEO
Headquarters: 3-6-2 Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku,
Tokyo 103-8251, Japan
Founded in: 1946
Business:
Manufacture and sale of cosmetics
Website:
https://corp.kose.co.jp/en/
I Peace, Inc.
Representative: Koji Tanabe,
Founder & CEO
Headquarters: 809 San Antonio Rd., Palo Alto, CA 94303, USA
Founded in: 2015
Business: Operation of the
Personal iPS Cell Banking service, and contract manufacture and
sale of clinical- and research-use iPS cells for companies
Website:
https://ipeace.com/en/
Reju, Inc.
Representative: Yurie Kamiya,
CEO
Headquarters: 6-15-1 Roppongi , Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0032, Japan
Founded in: 2022
Business: Supply of beauty and
health products and services using iPSF (iPS cell extract)
URL
https://rejuinc.com/
Reference: iPS cell research conducted by KOSÉ
As part of its rejuvenation research, KOSÉ has been analyzing
and evaluating dermal fibroblasts collected from a single donor
from the ages of 36 to 67, as well as iPS cells generated from
these cells, to study skin aging. KOSÉ has reported that
initialization of differentiated cells into undifferentiated iPS
cells restores the length of telomeres (the terminal portion of
chromosomes that shortens with each cell division) in all aged
cells. In another approach, KOSÉ has succeeded in inducing dermal
fibroblasts to differentiate into new dermal fibroblasts via iPS
cells, and has ascertained that the quality of mitochondria was
restored in dermal fibroblasts induced from these iPS cells when
compared with the original cells.
Reference: About I Peace
I Peace was founded in 2015 by Dr. Koji
Tanabe, a graduate of Professor Shinya Yamanaka's laboratory at Kyoto University and the second author of the
landmark paper on the world's first human iPS cell line. Dr. Tanabe
has been involved in iPS cell research since it's early days. By
manufacturing and selling cells for clinical and research use, I
Peace aims to quickly bring a variety of useful iPS cell
technologies to the world. Recognizing the unique advantage of iPS
cells—being able to generate them from anyone and use them for
personalized treatment—I Peace launched the Personal iPS Cell
Banking service with the commitment to making it possible for
individuals to obtain and use their own cells for personalized
disease treatment. The I Peace cell manufacturing facility has been
licensed by Japan's
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) to manufacture
specified processed cells and is also registered with the FDA in
the United States. I Peace
supplies clinical-grade iPS cells to pharmaceutical companies and
cell therapy development companies worldwide.
Reference: About Reju
Focusing on the rejuvenating effect of iPS cells, Reju entered a
technical partnership with I Peace and conducted research and
development with the aim of applying iPS cell technology to
rejuvenation, both inside and out, to improve the quality of life
in an era of 100-year life spans. Through extensive research and
development efforts, Reju has developed iPSF (iPS cell extract),
innovative product that encapsulates the rejuvenation properties of
iPS cells. Reju values science and evidence-based approach to make
a contribution to the next-generation of personal beauty and
healthcare, going beyond existing products and services in
anti-aging industry.
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SOURCE I Peace, Inc.; KOSÉ Corporation; Reju, Inc.