Cell therapy History - what are COSMECEUTICALS?

Nowadays we often hear the terms - cell therapy, cell cosmetics etc. but what do they mean and what is behind their historical development? Firstly one should not be fooled by the words 'cell extracts' as we all know that both plants and animals have cells, humans and animals being multi-cellular organisms. This can be deceiving when the 'buz' word is cell but could be a plant derivative, rather than what we are looking at, which are the properties contained within tissue cells.

As far back as 1913, Doctor Paul Nichans injected a critically ill patient with a parathyroid gland preparation taken from a sheep. The patient was cured which lead Nichans to continue his gland implantation work. The main problem was, that once the cells were extracted from the donor, they only had a life span of approximately 2 hours, after which time, their active properties were lost.

Not until 1949 was a method found to freeze dry the cells, which increased their longevity and better still in 1954 a liquid solution was created which gave the cells eternal life expectancy. Due to this development it was then possible to store, study and check the cells for viral infection etc. thereby facilitating cell cosmetics.

Swiss cosmetics company 'La Prairie' - created their first cell cosmetics range in 1978 using the liver tissue of embryonic sheep. The Biersdorf Company - (brand name Nivea) bought out the company and production ceased.

A short time later 'Cellap Laboratorie SA' began production of two ranges - one for females and one for males using tissue from lambs organs and are still in production today.

However, the major breakthrough came in 1997 when FORBS SCIENTIFIC MAGAZINE awarded the PALM of SUPREMACY to Russian Doctor Vorontsov for his developments in cell therapy, which was used back in the 1920's as an anti-ageing treatment.

Tissue cell extracts were used in the second world war by Russia for treating frost bite, then followed the certification and patent registration of - 'interferon', 'hematogen' and 'filatov serum'.

PLAZAN started its research in 1986 - offering its placenta cell preparations for clinical testing in 1991.

After lengthy and rigorous testing the Russian Ministry of Health officially recognised PLAZAN as the developer of the high quality placenta cell preparations we know today.