Cosmetic Business related FAQ

A.Yes it does. The registered INCI name is “Silkworm sh-Polypeptide-47.”

A.The gene sequence of human collagen is basically the same for all human beings. The human collagen DNA was synthesized in vitro. The optimized human collagen DNA was then inserted into a vector, and that vector was inserted in the egg of a silkworm.

A.In general, genetically modified foods (plants) contain genetically modified genes. However, Human Collagen I produced from cocoons does not contain any genes introduced to the silkworms because the pupae (silkworms) containing the gene are completely removed from the cocoons prior to the purification of Human Collagen I. This is the main difference with other genetically modified goods.

A.Approximately 7 to 10 mg of human collagen can be made. The silkworm cocoon is approximately 0.2 g.

A.It can be stably kept unopened for 2 years in a refrigerator.

A.Neosilk-Human Collagen I comprises the same amino-acid chain found in the collagen synthesized in the human body. For this reason, it is believed that the risk of allergic reactions is minimal, and is considered to be a cosmetic material that is safe and gentle on the human skin. Collagen type I is composed of two alpha-1 (I) chains and one alpha-2 (I) chain. The allergy to the cow collagen type I is known to mainly come from the alpha-2 (I) chain. Salmon collagen also contains the alpha-1 (I) chain and alpha-2 (I) chain. Neosilk-Human Collagen I only composes the alpha-1 (I) chains of the human collagen type I. In addition to it being a human type protein, it does not contain any alpha-2 (I) chains, so there is minimal risk of allergic reactions.

A.The safety of the product was confirmed by performing tests for the following:
acute poisoning, non-poisonous (single oral administration poison test), localized effect, skin stimulus, non-stimulus (alternative first stage skin stimulus test process, human patch testing), eye stimulus, non-stimulus (alternative eye stimulus test process), mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, and negative mutagenicity (bacterial reverse mutation test).

A.Neosilk-Human Collagen I composes the same amino-acid chain found in the collagen synthesized in the human body. For this reason, it is believed that the risk of allergic reactions are minimal, and is considered to be a cosmetic material that is safe and gentle on the human skin.

A.Insert the silk containing the human collagen in a buffer fluid. This will allow you to extract only the human collagen. No heat treatment or alkali treatment is needed. In addition, the human collagen retains the same amino acid composition as that of the collagen synthesized in the human body.

A.Dissolve the product in purified water and use the dissolved form as base solution. For example, if you intend to use 100 mg, create the base solution by dissolving the product in 100 mL of purified water as previously described. This will yield 0.1% Neosilk-Human Collagen I (note that the 100 mL base solution volume may be displayed as 100 g). We offer the product in 10 mg (10 mL = 10 g for use) and 100mg (100 mL = 100 g for use) sizes. It can be also dissolved in solutions that contain preservatives.

A.We do not conduct fully sterilized manufacturing, but the silkworms are raised in a dedicated clean room. Prior to the final bottling, the human collagen is filtered using a 0.45μm filter (with filter holes smaller than the size of standard bacteria).

A.Neosilk is a trademark owned by IBL (Registered No. 5412217). Human Collagen I refers to the collagen type I found in the human body.

A.We developed human collagen using state-of-the-art technology that employs transgenic silkworms (Patent No. 4271122 and 4701336). Neosilk-Human Collagen comprises the same amino-acid chain found in the collagen synthesized in the human body. This means that it is very safe and the risk of allergic reactions are minimal. In addition, because it is extracted from silk, it does not contain any animal-derived ingredients. The package form is lyophilized (freeze dried), making it long lasting even though no preservatives are used. It is also readily soluble, tasteless, and odorless.

A.No, it is odorless.

A.No, it consists of a single α1(I) chain.

A.The silk-extracted human collagen is entirely freeze dried (lyophilized). Therefore, it can remain stable for a long time without preservatives.

A.The HS code is 3504-00_XXX. The last three to four digits differ by country. Please contact your customs bureau of your country to reconfirm the number before deciding to import goods. The code is subject to change without notice.

A.The shipping cost depends on the volume when shipping it to customers. Customers outside Japan are expected to pay the transport costs in addition to the respective customs cost (such as taxes or levies) for import.

A.A near-single band is displayed through electrophoresis.

A.Yes. We have confirmed that the lyophilized Neosilk-Human Collagen I is stable for one month at a temperature of 37 degree Celsius. We do not have any data regarding heat tolerance to extremely high temperatures, but in general we believe that all types of protein begin to degenerate once the temperature reaches 60 degrees Celsius.

A.It is lyophilized (freeze dried). We choose this form of packaging to deliver long lasting stability without the use of preservatives.