Dubbed “the father of biohacking,” Dave Asprey is a renowned pioneer in the emerging biohacking space, which is quickly gaining popularity among those who believe science can unlock the tools to living a healthier, longer, and more fulfilling life - something OneSkin is very aligned with! Asprey has written and published several books outlining scientifically-backed hacks that promote system-wide health and longevity. He is also the founder of Bulletproof, a company well-known for their performance-oriented approach to nutrition.

Among Asprey's multiple media and entrepreneurial ventures, The Human Upgrade podcast is quickly gaining a cult-like following, as Asprey discusses how to maximize human performance using science, technology and personal development tools with experts in their respective fields.

We are proud to announce that Dave Asprey recently invited OneSkin’s CEO and Co-Founder, Carolina Reis Oliveira Ph.D, to discuss the science behind OneSkin and our proprietary peptide, OS-01.

You can listen to the full podcast episode, here, or read some of the key points discussed in this episode below!

Oliviera: “We spent 5 years [in] product development… trying to understand, if skin aging is a disease, what’s causing that disease?… What’s the target that we should intervene with?” [1]

In OneSkin’s earliest stage, our founding team of PhD longevity scientists leveraged their expertise in skin biology and tissue engineering to develop a unique testing platform utilizing lab-grown human skin models and MolClock - the first skin-specific molecular clock - to measure the biological age of skin. By utilizing this platform to test the efficacy of existing products and ingredients for their rejuvenating capabilities on human skin, our founders quickly discovered that most products didn’t affect the biological age of the skin - a problem they would eventually set out to solve.

Oliveira: “What we realized during this process is that most of the products don’t really reverse the aging of the skin. They can improve the appearance of the skin, make the skin plumper, more hydrated but they’re not effective at rejuvenating the skin.” [1]

This discovery led OneSkin to pivot from being a platform-based research company to a direct-to-consumer pioneer in the longevity space. Utilizing the same platform that allowed them to test existing products and ingredients, OneSkin’s founders set out to discover new molecules that could reverse the biological age of skin. Their goal? To develop a molecule capable of reducing cellular senescence - one of the nine hallmarks of aging and a key driver in skin aging in particular - thereby reversing the biological age of skin.

Throughout life, the DNA in our cells accumulate damage, eventually driving each cell to either die or enter into a state of cellular senescence, dubbing them senescent or zombie cells. When left to linger, senescent cells release harmful factors that accelerate aging and deterioration. As we age, our bodies become less efficient at clearing away senescent cells, and their subsequent accumulation is one of the primary reasons why we age. This is especially true for skin, which is why cellular senescence became OneSkin’s primary target in developing our lead compound, eventually leading us to develop the OS-01 peptide. (Read more about senescent cells here!)

Asprey: “This happens in your skin and your face.” [1]
Oliviera: “In your whole body, but primarily in your face because you have more exposure. You are exposed to UV radiation and several environmental stressors.” [1]

Since your skin is most exposed to environmental stressors, it experiences more senescent cell accumulation. Oliviera discusses how OneSkin went on to identify the molecules best suited for eliminating senescent cells in the skin.

Oliviera: “We decided to develop a screening platform to test over 1,000 different peptides until we found the one that has the highest or the greatest ability to decrease the accumulation of senescent cells. That's how we got to this peptide that we call OS-01.” [1]

Though many topical skin care products contain potentially beneficial ingredients, a large number of those products have little to no influence on the skin, due to their ingredients’ inability to penetrate the skin barrier. The epidermal layer is very good at keeping large molecules (eg. collagen) out of the inner, or dermal layers, preventing them from having measurable effects on the skin.

That’s why OneSkin takes advantage of the small size and chemical properties of peptides which allow them to penetrate the epidermal layer and enter the dermal layer. From there it can stimulate natural production of important molecules that contribute to skin health.

OneSkin’s proprietary peptide, OS-01, is scientifically proven to penetrate the skin and stimulate the natural production of molecules that are critical to maintaining skin health with age.

Oliviera: “We have actually tested the penetration, how much of the peptide actually goes into the dermis. So one of the studies that we do in our lab, we apply the cream on top of skin biopsies… after 24 hours we separate the [dermal layers] from the [epidermal layers] and we measure how much peptide gets into the [dermal layers]... that’s when we want to see the collagen production and the stimulation of fibroblasts and so on.” [1]

OS-01 wasn’t a champion amongst 1000+ peptides for nothing! Not only does it penetrate to the dermis layer at an unprecedented rate, it also reduces the accumulation of senescent cells, and stimulates the production of important molecules for skin health including hyaluronic acid, elastin and collagen, along with activating DNA repair mechanisms.

Oliviera: “This peptide has a very interesting profile because again, it’s small enough to penetrate. It’s super safe, we have done all the safety studies. There is no toxicity, no irritation. We have done all the recommended studies by the FDA for personal care products. And it has this beautiful effect of reducing the accumulation of senescent cells and reduces the release of inflammatory markers and increases the production of hyaluronic acid, elastin and collagen.” [1]

We are both thrilled and honored to have our CEO spotlighted on The Human Upgrade podcast. At OneSkin, we set a higher standard for skin care, tackling skin aging at the molecular level. Our star peptide not only reduces the accumulation of senescent cells, one of the main drivers of skin aging, but also penetrates deep into skin to stimulate the production of important molecules for skin health, ultimately reducing the biological age of skin!

References

• [1] https://daveasprey.com/one-skin-944/