Epigenetics: The Innovative Science Behind Eucerin’s Latest Research

This fascinating research field connects our behaviors and environment, including diet, physical activity, or exposure to UVA/UVB radiation to our gene activity. For example, exercise frequency and dietary choices can cause epigenetic changes that affect how the body interprets DNA sequences.  

They turn specific genes on or off thus controlling their activity rather than affecting the genes themselves. This represents an important mechanism for the regulation of biological processes.
This highlights the connection between our lifestyle choices and genes. By modulating gene expression, these epigenetic changes can significantly affect the condition of our body and our skin. Understanding epigenetics provides valuable insights into how making healthier lifestyle choices, as well as optimising one’s skincare routine can have a positive effect on our genes, and even on how young our skin looks.

Epigenetic mechanisms operate through several pathways to control gene expression, reactivating and deactivating genes to produce proteins.

DNA methylation represents the most well-known and understood epigenetic mechanism: How does it work? A methyl group is added to specific points on the DNA. If it occurs in regulatory DNA regions, the methyl group can act as a “blockage” and inhibit gene 'reading'. This turns genes 'off' and prevents their expression. Conversely, removing the methyl group, a demethylation process, turns genes 'on', allowing their expression.

Epigenetic changes are natural mechanisms that shape cells through the whole journey of life and continue to evolve due to ageing, lifestyle, and environment:

• Epigenetics and age: Throughout life, an individual's epigenetic profile changes. The epigenetics you are born with differ from those in childhood or adulthood.
• Epigenetics and reversibility: Not all epigenetic alterations are permanent. Many epigenetic changes can be introduced or reversed in response to behavioral or environmental shifts.

After 15 years of research, Eucerin scientists have made a breakthrough discovery: the epigenetic active ingredient Epicelline®. Working deep within the skin, Epicelline® reactivates youth genes to help visibly reverse signs of ageing in just 4 weeks*. Unlike many other anti-ageing ingredients, it reduces wrinkles and fine lines without causing irritation, and has been both dermatologically and clinically tested for good skin tolerability.

The result is the Eucerin Hyaluron-Filler Epigenetic Serum – a clinically tested anti-ageing serum powered by patented Age Clock Technology and Epicelline®. It is proven to deliver firmer, smoother, younger-looking skin by effectively targeting visible signs of ageing.

*Product-in-use test with 160 women over 4 weeks.

The discovery of natural mechanisms in the genome that activate specific genes is over 80 years old. Conrad Hal Waddington, a British geneticist and developmental biologist is considered the pioneer of epigenetics. Yet, it was not until the early 2000s that epigenetics gained attention in international research.

Eucerin scientists have been leading experts in epigenetic skin science for over 15 years. At Eucerin labs, 20 interdisciplinary researchers have analysed more than 50.000 active substances to develop products with epigenetic ingredients that can help reverse signs of ageing.

Since 2008, we have conducted extensive epigenetic research: In 2010, we were one of the first to identify comprehensive epigenetic changes that take place during the skin ageing process (Gronniger et al., 2010). Three years later, in 2013, we investigated the impact of age-related epigenetic changes on skin gene expression using transcriptome sequencing (Raddatz et al., 2013). After another three years, we developed a skin cell 'age clock' and were granted a patent for it in 2021 (Bormann et al., 2016). This patented Age Clock Technology allows us to discover groundbreaking, dermocosmetic solutions that can effectively turn back time on skin ageing.