Molecular Bioliquefaction

Molecular Bioliquefaction® Technology is a patented technology developed by the “Toso Montanari” Department of Industrial Chemistry of the University of Bologna and exclusively licensed to Phenbiox. This enzyme-based technology makes it possible to recover 100% of plant bioactive compounds in a completely bio-available and active form as water-based liquid ingredients. Plant-derived active ingredients still play a primary role in cosmetic products. To produce plant extracts traditional extraction technologies are still mainly used. In plants, thousands of different and interesting target molecules are present, and many of these molecules cannot be extracted with a traditional solvent-based process that is not effective on molecules covalently linked to the solid part of the plant. Molecular Bioliquefaction® Technology was developed to overcome the limitations of traditional extraction technologies. Through a combination of different treatments, it is possible to recover all the different molecules that make up the plant phytocomplex, obtaining end products that are also highly bioavailable. In fact, this approach is inspired by the human digestive system, able through a sequence of different enzymatic processes to make all the energy and beneficial molecules contained in food bioavailable for our metabolism. The skin has no proper digestive system of its own, so the use of poorly or non-bioavailable plant-derived ingredients can greatly compromise the delivery of the desired effect of a cosmetic formulation.

Hyperfermentation

In the cosmetics raw materials sector, fermentation is a transformation process of great potential interest since it can exploit a micro-organism to produce innovative active ingredients.
For thousands of years, fermentation has provided many cultures with the means of transforming food, increasing its nutritional value, preservability and bioavailability. One of the most detailed agricultural tests from ancient times is Columella’s De Re Rustica (On Rural Affairs, 65 AD), on farming and fermentation connected with wine-making: this work summarizes everything the Romans knew about agriculture.
This millennia-old know how, typical of the Mediterranean area, combined with the latest biotechnologies at our disposal, has made it possible to develop a new and important production process: 

HYPERFERMENTATION TECHNOLOGY (Bioliquefaction + Fermentation) the phytocomplex naturally contained in the plant is reinforced thanks to fermentation, transforming the inert fibres into even more active ingredients.
Over 400 plants and part of plants (see list on page 44) are available in our FERMENTED EXTRACTS line, all produced on-demand to guarantee the best preservation of the active molecules as well as the crisp freshness due to the excellence of the plant material used.
Because FERMENTED EXTRACTS are water-based products, they are very easy to use and can be added to the water phase of any formulation either before or after the heating phase.
All the products in this line can be used in organic certified cosmetic formulations.
FERMENTED EXTRACTS
Typical INCI name
: aqua, [name of the plant] extract, Saccharomyces ferment lysate filtrate, citric acid, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate.
 


Stimulated Stem Cell

Stimulated Stem Cell Technology is an innovative process that pushes plant stem cells to overproduce bioactive compounds to further boost the efficacy  of the plant stem cell-derived active ingredients. Plant stem cells are undifferentiated cells that serve as the origin of plant vitality, since they maintain themselves while providing a steady supply of precursor cells to form differentiated tissues and organs in the plant. Being totipotent cells, virtually any chemical that the plant is able to synthesize in any tissue can be produced from these cultures. Thus plant stem cells are the ideal starting material of cell culture for phytochemical production, as cells are successfully mass cultured while maintaining quality. Furthermore, in a stem cell culture it is possible to perform what is called Stem Cell Stimulation.  This process foresees the introduction in the growth medium of some selected natural stress able to force the plant stem cell to overproduce secondary metabolites of interest, obtaining not only a more rich but also a more concentrated phytocomplex.

Enzymatic activation of vegetable oil

The Enzymatic Activation of Vegetable Oil is a bio-catalytic process able to break up triglycerides into their constituents (fatty acids and glycerides), releasing all the energy entrapped in vegetable oil. In nature, oils are one of the most efficient forms of energy and carbon storage and are possibly the first cosmetic ingredient ever used. Plants generally store their oil in seeds, where they accumulate as triglycerides during maturation. This reserve of energy is mobilised during the germination process that involves a number of factors, one of the main ones being the process of oil activation. To be suitable for energy purposes, oils must in fact undergo an enzymatically-controlled activation process, which transforms the triglycerides into smaller molecules releasing free fatty acids and glycerides, and these are the real fuel that the plant uses for germination. As in plant germination, human cells are unable to directly uptake and metabolise triglycerides. When any cell in our body has a specific metabolic need connected to the triglycerides transported by plasma lipoproteins, these triglycerides must go through an activation process catalysed by specific enzymes. This activation process enables the released free fatty acids and glycerides to cross the cell membrane, by means of active and passive transport mechanisms, and to be used in the various metabolic pathways. Oils are used to “nourish” the skin but their main activity is only to repair and soften the outermost layers of it. Thanks to the Enzymatic Activation of Vegetable Oil, using specific enzymatic treatment mimicking the activation process that occurs in our body, the limitations on the bioavailability of the oils can be overcome and oils can become a real active ingredient.

Natural Liposomes

Our Natural Liposomes are an efficient and completely naturally derived, COSMOS compliant delivery system that can be used to protect and enhance the effectiveness of cosmetic ingredients. Natural Liposomes are sphere-shaped vesicles consisting of phospholipid bilayers. The chemical structure of phospholipids, in water environment, forces these molecules to rearrange in a tail-tail position creating the double layer with hydrophilic properties both on the inner and the outer surface. These liposomes can therefore be used to facilitate the penetration into the cell of water-soluble actives contained in the liposomes, but also of oil-soluble actives that can be included in the double layer structure. The main constituent of our Natural Liposome is plant-derived phosphatidylcholine from non-GMO soy. Phosphatidylcholines are major components of biological membranes and this facilitates the delivery effect of our liposomes as they are more easily able to merge with skin cell membranes, releasing the active ingredient inside the cell. Natural Liposomes can be easily loaded with different kinds of ingredients, offering our customers a broad choice of customization.
The following product line was created with this technology:
  • PHEN-LIPOSOMES

Extracts

Plant extracts are liquid preparations obtained from fresh or dried medicinal plants by means of suitable physical extraction processes; these include the use of appropriate solvents and the employment of maceration or percolation, or other suitable procedures.
We can use various extraction solvents such as, for example, water, plant oils and plant glycerine.
Whatever technique is used, the production of any plant extract starts with selection of the medicinal substance, i.e. the part of the plant used for cosmetic purposes.
To ensure correct extraction of the substances, the plants must be ground to an appropriate degree of fragmentation, while the choice of solvent depends on the type of active  ingredients to be extracted.
Three product lines were created with this technology:
  • ACTIVE WATER EXTRACTS – water-based extracts
  • ACTIVE LIPO EXTRACTS – oil-based extracts
  • PRESERVATIVE-FREE EXTRACTS – preservative-free hydroglycerine-based extracts

Centrifuged

The best fresh fruits and vegetables are selected and placed in a drum fitted with a series of metal blades that rotate at a speed that develops a centrifugal force able to break down the plant cells and thus release the juice they contain.
We use a non-continuous treatment, alternating brief rotation cycles with pauses to avoid heating the juice and potentially degrading the active fraction.
The resulting centrifuged product is then filtered until it runs clear and preserved to ensure an appropriate shelf life.
The following product line was created with this technology:
  • ACTIVE JUICE