MatTek Corporation, a producer of in vitro human epithelial tissue equivalents headquartered in the neighbourhood of Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A., said that theEuropean Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM) has validated an improved version of the company’s EpiDerm Skin Irritation Test (SIT).
The test’s initial version had been previously validated in April 2007. The major modification of the new EpiDerm SIT is an extended chemical exposure time from 15 to 60 minutes, thus providing according to MatTek “an improved sensitivity of the in vitro EpiDerm SIT and better correlation with in vivo Draize rabbit skin irritation results”.
The Modified EpiDerm SIT eliminates the need for animal testing when used to determine skin irritation potential of chemicals, including raw cosmetic materials. European laws prohibit animal testing for both cosmetic products and their ingredients.
