Frost & Sullivan Lauds RAHN AG for Product Quality Leadership in the Biological Active Ingredients Market for Cosmetics

- The company's revolutionary sun care biological active ingredient, CELLIGENT®, offers an effective completion to UV filter ingredients

LONDON, Sep. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Based on its recent research on biological active ingredients in skin repair, Frost & Sullivan presents RAHN's active ingredients portfolio, RAHN-Cosmetic Actives with the 2012 European Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Quality Leadership for the development of CELLIGENT®, a three active ingredient complex that functions as a biological supplement to ultraviolet (UV) filter ingredients in cosmetics.

The sun protection segment is one of the fastest growing segments in the European personal care industry, which is expected to register robust annual growth rates propelled by product innovation and demanding consumers. Notably, consumers are increasingly aware that UV exposure promotes skin aging and cancer. UV filters build the first line of defence and obviously are the most important ingredients in sun protection products as they reduce the penetration of UV-light into the skin. CELLIGENT®, as a biological second line of defence, favourably lends itself to sun care products as it protects the skin's cell and DNA from light-induced damage and activates the cells' repair mechanisms.

CELLIGENT® is specifically developed to treat the UV-stressed skin by combining three active ingredients – ethyl ferulate, rosemary extract, and uridine monophosphate of vegetable origin – to form an active ingredient complex. Ethyl ferulate, in the process of absorbing the UV rays, combats oxygen radical formation and thereby counteracts indirect DNA damage via oxidative stress. Rosemary extract is rich in carnosolic acid, which is a strong natural antioxidant enhancing the skin's defence against free radicals. Uridine monophosphate is a biochemical building block that supports cellular DNA repair. The DNA protection abilities were qualitatively proven by comparing Placebo treated 3D skin samples with CELLIGENT® treated skin samples. In addition, CELLIGENT® was shown to accelerate the regeneration of UV-induced skin redness in-vivo: after just one day, the regeneration process was twice as advanced as that in placebo-treated skin.

"The confirmed scientific results in-vitro and in-vivo of CELLIGENT®'s effectiveness increases its reliability," says Frost & Sullivan Vice President Shomik Majumdar. "CELLIGENT®'s combined efficiency to protect against free radicals and UV-ray mediated damage, coupled with the capacity for DNA repair and regeneration of skin cells makes it advantageous compared to competing products that are not biologically active ingredients and hence unable to offer combined action of skin protection and skin repair in the sun care category," says Frost & Sullivan Senior Research Analyst Dr. Nandhini Rajagopal.

All three ingredients in CELLIGENT® are naturally derived. Further, the production of all the ingredients (fermentation and extraction) is sustainable. Significantly, CELLIGENT® is stable at all relevant temperature and pH conditions and may be heated up to two hours. "The stable nature of CELLIGENT® helps in easy formulation of end products, like anti-aging and sun care products," added Rajagopal. "It is suitable for sensitive skin, and it's oil soluble with no preservatives."

Since introducing the product in 2009, CELLIGENT® has not received any negative feedback from customers on usability. This indicates that it is favourably accepted and easy to formulate. The toxicology studies of CELLIGENT® too prove that it is non-toxic, non-irritating, non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-mutagenic. It is readily bio-degradable. In addition, CELLIGENT® does not contain any of the allergenic substances described in the cosmetic regulation.

The application of CELLIGENT® was increased recently to address stem cell protection. Stem cells play a crucial role in skin rejuvenation, and protecting them from daily stresses (such as UV light) slows stem-cell aging and extends skin rejuvenation further into old age. Indeed, CELLIGENT® protected epidermal stem- and progenitor cells against sunlight: it maintained their ability to restore the proper three-dimensional structure of the epidermis after UV stress and thus protected epidermal stem cell function.

"RAHN maintains a close working relationship with its customers through symposiums, trainings and workshops," said Rajagopal. "This too enables them to stay ahead in the R&D curve and consistently address the changing needs of the industry."

In recognition of all these factors, Frost & Sullivan is pleased to present RAHN with the 2012 Europe Product Quality Leadership Award in biological active ingredient skin repair market. Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to a company that differentiates itself in terms of product performance, reliability, design, usability and perceived value within the industry.

Frost & Sullivan's Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.

About RAHN

RAHN Group – specialising in market-orientated cosmetic active substances since 1999

RAHN AG is a financially independent Swiss family company with two business areas, Energy Curing and Cosmetics. RAHN AG has been a key player in the international marketplace since 1940 and has more recently grown into an internationally acclaimed expert in the development and sale of speciality chemicals.

In 1999 RAHN launched its own cleverly devised RAHN-Cosmetic Actives for use in a variety of applications.

RAHN-Cosmetic Actives – a holistic platform satisfying individual customer requirements

We at RAHN speak the language of cosmetic science and strive to generate new inspiration for our customers. This message is reflected in RAHN-Cosmetic Actives where we recognise and harness the potential of nature, whilst combining it with modern technology to generate market-orientated, tried and tested active concepts. Constantly at the cutting edge of skin biology, we transform our scientifically proven systems into cosmetic statements. With its extensive platform, RAHN-Cosmetic Actives is capable of meeting a wide range of customer requirements be it in terms of marketing, science, product development or product safety.

Uncomplicated customer service – second nature to us!

Our customers are at the very heart of our business and we recognise the importance of responding swiftly to customer requests to offer workable solutions. The documentation for RAHN-Cosmetic Actives is comprehensive and practical. Our customers are delighted to use the intelligent trade names on their cosmetic packaging to further enhance pack claims.  We are also equipped to deal with formulation problems in our technical applications laboratory as well as providing a wide range of tailor-made, state-of-the-art formulations.

For more information please contact:
RAHN AG
Dorflistr. 120
8050 Zurich
Switzerland

Tel:  +41-44-315-42-00
Fax:  +41-44-315-42-45
E-mail: cosmetics@rahn-group.com
www.rahn-group.com

About Frost & Sullivan

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Contact:

Catherine Brassell
Frost & Sullivan
Best Practices Group
T: +44(0)207-9157867
E: catherine.brassell@frost.com