Large-Scale Fabrication of Silk Fibroin-Based Artificial Skin for Cosmetic Research

Silk fibroin, a widely utilized material in skin-related applications, possesses a comparable structure and amino acid composition to the cornified cell envelope found in the stratum corneum. This similarity suggests its potential as an alternative to animal experimentation in cosmetic research, particularly as artificial skin. However, improvements are required in silk fibroin-based films to achieve sufficient similarity for practical usage and enable large-scale industrial production. In this study, various methods were employed to synthesize different types of artificial skin for key application scenarios in cosmetic research, including deposition tests, sensation tests, and absorption tests. For mass production of silk fibroin-based films, the conventional solvent casting method, though slow and resulting in poor thickness uniformity, has been commonly used. In this work, we adopted a coating method that allows for easy modification of the artificial skin's surface properties, enabling representation of different skin types (e.g., oily, dry, and combination skin). Furthermore, the proposed method offers significant advantages such as faster production and improved thickness uniformity, making it feasible for industrial-scale manufacturing.