Shiseido won the top award in the Basic Research category (Oral) at the 27th International Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists (IFSCC) Congress, beating 62 other entries. Cosmetic chemists from around the world gather to present their latest research at this event, which ended yesterday, in Johannesburg, South Africa. It’s not the company’s first win – it’s Shiseido’s fourth consecutive year taking home top honors.

The winning presentation was given by Toyonobu Yamashita, Researcher, Skincare Product Research & Development Center, at the Shiseido Research Center. It’s theme was “non-invasive in situ assessment of structural alteration of human dermis caused by photoaging using a novel collagen-specific imaging technique.” This means that the latest imaging technology was applied and successfully visualized collagen status, or changes via aging inside the skin, without damaging skin.

When women’s skin was evaluated using Shiseido’s new technique, researchers verified that collagen fibers had significantly decreased, indicating damage due to the effects from UV rays and aging. This suggests that these factors may lead to the decline of the skin’s resilience and elasticity. Based on the results from this study, Shiseido will conduct more research to realize the value of anti-aging skincare products, as well as the evaluation of effective ingredients.