Marine therapy: Eczema serum developed with stem cell tech claims to repair skin damage in a week

TOS Skin was founded by Traslin Tan, who suffered from chronic eczema brought about by post-natal complications.

“I had terrible eczema on my hands with wounds that would crack and ooze. It was so bad it affected me not just physically but emotionally. The hands are also particularly hard to treat because they are constantly in motion,” ​said Tan.

Through her previous occupation in product development for skin care supplements, Tan came across marine botanical stem cell technology, which helped her overcome chronic eczema. “For the lack of a better word, it ‘cured’ my eczema.”​

After three years in development, Tan launched TOS Skin in July 2020 with a specialised eczema treatment serum.

The Intensive Marine Concentrate was developed with Repairae, the company’s proprietary ingredient which contains the aforementioned marine stem cell technology.

Repairae is derived from marine botanicals which are sustainably harvested from the depths of the ocean and extracted via fermentation in Switzerland.  

In addition to the marine botanicals, the formula contains German chamomile, which is traditionally prized for its healing properties, as well as niacinamide. Together, the company claims that users will be able to visibly see improvements in as little as a week.

The serum has undergone pre-clinical trials on human skin models to determine its ability to reduce oxidative stress and provide protection against oxidative damage. Additionally, the serum was also observed to reduce cellular senescence in UVA irradiated skin cells after 72 hours of treatment.

Aside from being an eczema treatment, Intensive Marine Concentrate is also marketed as a recovery treatment for aesthetic procedures such as skin laser treatment and plastic surgery.

According to Tan, the serum is able to reduce post-treatment recovery downtime by half.

Holistic healing

The company has more products in the development pipeline that include new categories of products to round-up the existing line-up.

“We want to make sure every single product we push out is tested. This means it may take slightly longer to launch new products. That said we are aiming to launch two products this year,” ​said Tan.

Additionally, it is also working on another product range targeting the medical channel.

“The core of our brand will always be eczema care. This range – the professional range – will probably have only one SKU. It will be an enhanced version of the existing serum and targeted at [general practitioner] and dermatology clinics. For this channel, clinical tests are very important. It’s a big hurdle for us as a start-up but it’s something we are aiming for,” ​said Tan.

Another category the company intends to develop in the future is a supplement specific for eczema-prone skin.

“Topical products are only one part of the equation. When it comes to eczema, having a holistic approach is essential. I don’t think there’s an eczema-specific skin supplement in the market so there’s a lot of potential in developing one,” ​said Tan.

Eventually, Tan said the goal was to create a community to educate and support people who suffer from eczema.

“We don’t want to reveal too much about our plans, but this support system won’t just be about our skin care products, it will also involve experts like dieticians who can help educate people about managing eczema.”​