FANCL: Skin Firmness is Determined Not by the 'Quantity' of Elastin, but by its 'Connections'!
FANCL discovered that skin firmness and elasticity are critically influenced not just by the quantity of elastin fibers, but by their 'thickness' and 'connections'. They developed a unique 3D simulation method to visually and quantitatively elucidate how elasticity declines with age.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 8, 2026 at 20:10
- 🔍 Collected: May 8, 2026 at 11:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 9, 2026 at 01:22 (13h 50m after Collected)
FANCL Corporation, in its research on "elastin fibers1)" known as a component that supports skin firmness and elasticity, has newly revealed that skin elasticity is extremely important not only for the quantity of elastin but also for the "thickness of elastin fibers" and "how well the fibers are connected to each other."
This time, we developed a unique 3D simulation evaluation method that reproduces the 3D structure of elastin fibers obtained from actual human skin and applies force on a computer. This allowed us to visually and quantitatively capture, for the first time, the mechanism by which skin elasticity decreases with aging.
These findings will be applied to elucidating the mechanism of wrinkle formation and developing anti-aging cosmetics that provide a more tangible effect.
This research is a joint effort with Yamaguchi University, and parts of it were presented orally at the "16th International Conference on Computational Methods" and the "9th Elastin and Related Molecules Research Group," and also published in the scientific journal "Scientific Reports (2025) 1528598."
1) Elastin fibers: Fibers present in the dermis of the skin that play a role in maintaining skin elasticity.
【Summary of this Research】
Reproduced the 3D structure of elastin fibers obtained from actual human skin
Developed a model that can predict skin elasticity by applying force on a computer
Discovered that the key to maintaining elasticity is the "thickness" and "connections" of elastin fibers
*For details, please refer to "Research Overview and Findings" onwards.
【Background and Purpose of the Research】
Our company has previously clarified that elastin fiber structure changes with aging through human skin tissue transparency technology and 3D structural analysis. However, it was not known to what extent these structural changes affect skin elasticity.
One of the main reasons was that it was difficult to isolate and examine the effect of elastin "alone" because elastin, collagen, and other components are complexly mixed in the skin.
Therefore, in this research, we challenged ourselves to directly investigate the "relationship between elastin structure and elasticity" by creating a model that extracts only elastin fibers and virtually applying force.
【Future Development and Possibilities】
Our company has developed technology to observe and analyze the internal structure of excised skin in 3D, and has investigated age-related changes and the effects of cosmetic ingredients. In this research, by developing this technology further and verifying the relationship between elastin fiber structure and skin elasticity through simulation, we clarified that changes in fiber structure are deeply involved in skin firmness and elasticity. This achievement makes it possible to understand at a structural level how the decline in firmness and elasticity felt with age occurs. Moving forward, we expect to utilize this knowledge to search for new cosmetic ingredients that prevent and improve the decline in firmness and elasticity.
We will continue to further elucidate the mechanism of skin aging and apply it to the development of new anti-aging cosmetics.
【Research Overview and Findings】
① Developed a unique skin elasticity evaluation method inspired by earthquake resistance simulation for houses
In this research, inspired by the technology that evaluates the earthquake resistance of actual houses on a computer without shaking them, we newly developed a simulation evaluation method to predict skin elasticity from a three-dimensional elastin fiber structure.
First, the elastin fibers of excised human skin tissue2) were photographed in 3D (Figure 1 left), and the thickness, number, length, direction, and connections of the fibers were converted into data to construct a 3D model of the fibers in the dermis (Figure 1 middle). Using this model, the deformation of the skin and fibers under a certain applied force was reproduced and evaluated through simulation (Figure 1 right).
2) This research was conducted using skin tissue obtained with ethical considerations, based on the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Figure 1 New skin elasticity evaluation method using simulation
② Elucidated the mechanism of age-related elasticity decline by comparing fiber structures of young and old skin
Using the developed simulation evaluation method, we modeled the elastin fiber structures obtained from aged and young skin and compared their elasticity.
As a result, young skin showed high elasticity. It was observed that there were many thick and long fibers, the fibers were densely connected to each other, forming a network structure, and when force was applied, the structure did not break, and there were areas where the fibers stretched and contracted (Figure 2 left).
On the other hand, the elasticity of aged skin significantly decreased. It was confirmed that the fibers were thin and short, fragmented in places, and when force was applied, the fibers only stretched with almost no areas contracting (Figure 2 right).
Keywords: (empty)
This time, we developed a unique 3D simulation evaluation method that reproduces the 3D structure of elastin fibers obtained from actual human skin and applies force on a computer. This allowed us to visually and quantitatively capture, for the first time, the mechanism by which skin elasticity decreases with aging.
These findings will be applied to elucidating the mechanism of wrinkle formation and developing anti-aging cosmetics that provide a more tangible effect.
This research is a joint effort with Yamaguchi University, and parts of it were presented orally at the "16th International Conference on Computational Methods" and the "9th Elastin and Related Molecules Research Group," and also published in the scientific journal "Scientific Reports (2025) 1528598."
1) Elastin fibers: Fibers present in the dermis of the skin that play a role in maintaining skin elasticity.
【Summary of this Research】
Reproduced the 3D structure of elastin fibers obtained from actual human skin
Developed a model that can predict skin elasticity by applying force on a computer
Discovered that the key to maintaining elasticity is the "thickness" and "connections" of elastin fibers
*For details, please refer to "Research Overview and Findings" onwards.
【Background and Purpose of the Research】
Our company has previously clarified that elastin fiber structure changes with aging through human skin tissue transparency technology and 3D structural analysis. However, it was not known to what extent these structural changes affect skin elasticity.
One of the main reasons was that it was difficult to isolate and examine the effect of elastin "alone" because elastin, collagen, and other components are complexly mixed in the skin.
Therefore, in this research, we challenged ourselves to directly investigate the "relationship between elastin structure and elasticity" by creating a model that extracts only elastin fibers and virtually applying force.
【Future Development and Possibilities】
Our company has developed technology to observe and analyze the internal structure of excised skin in 3D, and has investigated age-related changes and the effects of cosmetic ingredients. In this research, by developing this technology further and verifying the relationship between elastin fiber structure and skin elasticity through simulation, we clarified that changes in fiber structure are deeply involved in skin firmness and elasticity. This achievement makes it possible to understand at a structural level how the decline in firmness and elasticity felt with age occurs. Moving forward, we expect to utilize this knowledge to search for new cosmetic ingredients that prevent and improve the decline in firmness and elasticity.
We will continue to further elucidate the mechanism of skin aging and apply it to the development of new anti-aging cosmetics.
【Research Overview and Findings】
① Developed a unique skin elasticity evaluation method inspired by earthquake resistance simulation for houses
In this research, inspired by the technology that evaluates the earthquake resistance of actual houses on a computer without shaking them, we newly developed a simulation evaluation method to predict skin elasticity from a three-dimensional elastin fiber structure.
First, the elastin fibers of excised human skin tissue2) were photographed in 3D (Figure 1 left), and the thickness, number, length, direction, and connections of the fibers were converted into data to construct a 3D model of the fibers in the dermis (Figure 1 middle). Using this model, the deformation of the skin and fibers under a certain applied force was reproduced and evaluated through simulation (Figure 1 right).
2) This research was conducted using skin tissue obtained with ethical considerations, based on the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Figure 1 New skin elasticity evaluation method using simulation
② Elucidated the mechanism of age-related elasticity decline by comparing fiber structures of young and old skin
Using the developed simulation evaluation method, we modeled the elastin fiber structures obtained from aged and young skin and compared their elasticity.
As a result, young skin showed high elasticity. It was observed that there were many thick and long fibers, the fibers were densely connected to each other, forming a network structure, and when force was applied, the structure did not break, and there were areas where the fibers stretched and contracted (Figure 2 left).
On the other hand, the elasticity of aged skin significantly decreased. It was confirmed that the fibers were thin and short, fragmented in places, and when force was applied, the fibers only stretched with almost no areas contracting (Figure 2 right).
Keywords: (empty)