Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Licenses Multi-Active Brightening Facial Essence Patent for RMB 2.15 Million

Recently, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, released a public notice on the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, proposing to transfer its“A Multi-Effect Radiance-Enhancing and Brightening Essence Complex and Its Preparation Process”The patent was transferred to Shanghai Beifuke Medical Technology Co., Ltd. through negotiated pricing, with a transaction amount ofRMB 2.15 million, and during the period from the initial market launch to delisting of the relevant certified products, the assignee shall pay based on the annual sales revenue of2% Pay revenue-sharing fees to the transferor.

This patent is an unpublished invention patent, byShen Zhengyu, Lu Wenli, et al. (9 individuals)R&D: The core achievement is the establishment of a technical system featuring synergistic multi-active ingredients and excellent stability. By substituting a portion of the aqueous phase with a high proportion of polyols, combined with concentrated high-speed shear emulsification technology and distinctive active ingredients such as Gentiana macrophylla extract, this approach achieves efficient whitening efficacy while ensuring ingredient stability. It provides an optimized solution for whitening skincare products.

In recent years, with the continuous advancement of cosmetic science and growing consumer demand for skin beautification benefits, whitening serums have become a significant category in the skincare market. Numerous studies have demonstrated that various whitening active ingredients—such as tranexamic acid, arbutin, niacinamide, ectoin, ergothioneine, nonapeptide-1, ceramides, and plant extracts (e.g., Gentiana macrophylla extract and Sophora flavescens root extract)—offer multiple benefits, including inhibition of melanin synthesis, scavenging of free radicals, repair of photodamage, and reduction of inflammatory responses.

However, most of these ingredients exhibit high biological activity but are also highly unstable, making them prone to degradation, oxidation, hydrolysis, or structural inactivation within formulation systems.

Currently, the most common formulation forms of whitening serums areOil-in-water (O/W) or anhydrous system, extending the active period of active ingredients through methods such as encapsulation, coating, or the addition of stabilizers. Commonly used antioxidant stabilizers on the market, such as tocopheryl acetate (a vitamin E derivative) and TT (pentaerythritol tetrakis(di-tert-butylhydroxyhydrocinnamate)), are generally lipophilic substances that dissolve in the oil phase. In contrast, most active ingredients (such as ergothioneine, arbutin, and dipotassium glycyrrhizate) are primarily distributed in the aqueous phase, resulting in phase separation between the stabilizers and the protected components within the physical structure.

Moreover, as modern serums tend to feature a “light and refreshing” texture, the oil phase proportion is generally low, and stabilizer content is limited. This results in limited contact efficiency between the oil phase and active ingredients within the entire system, leading to insufficient antioxidant protection. Consequently, whitening active ingredients are more prone to oxidation or degradation, causing quality issues such as discoloration (darkening), off-odors, decreased pH, and phase separation, which significantly compromise the product’s stability, safety, and efficacy.

In traditional emulsification processes (such as conventional low-speed emulsification or phase-transfer emulsification), the resulting emulsions exhibit large particle sizes, loose structures, and uneven oil droplet distribution. This hinders the effective expansion of the interfacial area for stabilizers in the oil phase, preventing adequate contact with active ingredients. Furthermore, instability issues associated with these active ingredients are frequently revealed during accelerated stability testing; for instance, under conditions of high-temperature storage (45°C), intense light exposure, or air contact, products rapidly undergo browning, odor changes, and structural breakdown of the emulsion. Consequently, merely increasing the concentration of antioxidants or preservatives fails to address the root cause and may instead lead to increased irritation or non-compliance with safety regulatory limits.

In this context,How to improve the efficiency of stabilizers, enabling maximal effective contact with active whitening ingredients in the aqueous phase under the constraint of a limited oil phase,It is a critical technical issue that urgently needs to be addressed in cosmetic formulation design.

Meanwhile,The synergistic mechanisms among active ingredients within the same system are also receiving increasing attention.However, the synergistic effects of these components rely on the effective concentration and spatial distribution of the active ingredients; insufficient stability leading to their degradation significantly diminishes such synergy.

To this end, the R&D team has proposed a multi-effect brightening and radiance-enhancing serum complex along with its preparation process. The core innovations of this patent are concentrated inFormulation System Construction, Preparation Process Optimization, and Synergistic Effects of Active IngredientsThree Core Dimensions Form a Technical Solution That Combines Stability with High Efficiency.

In formula design, a pioneering firstIncorporating the extract of traditional Chinese medicinal herb Gentiana macrophylla (Yingshuyan) into the whitening system,The active component M1, composed of Actinidia chinensis fruit water and Sophora flavescens root extract, is combined with yeast/rice ferment filtrate. This formulation not only demonstrates excellent melanin inhibition on its own but also produces synergistic effects with other whitening agents such as arbutin and Nonapeptide-1.

Cell-based assays confirmed that the formulation containing Gentiana macrophylla extract exhibited a significantly higher melanin inhibition rate than the untreated control group, thereby expanding the application scenarios of traditional Chinese medicinal herbs in skincare.

Meanwhile, the formula is scientifically compounded with multiple functional ingredients for moisturizing, repair, and anti-inflammatory effects, such as barrier-repair components containing Ceramide NP, Heptapeptide-6 with DNA damage repair activity, and a 4D hyaluronic acid system for multi-effect hydration, achieving multidimensional synergy between whitening and skin repair.

In terms of preparation process, it breaks through the bottleneck of traditional emulsification technology by adoptingHigh-Proportion Polyols(Glycerin, 1,3-propanediol, etc.) partially replace the aqueous phase, and are combined with a concentrated high-speed shear emulsification process, undergoing homogenization at a high rotational speed of 8,000–10,000 RPM for 2–3 minutes to construct an emulsion structure with smaller particle size and more uniform, dense distribution.

This process not only significantly enhances the contact efficiency between the oil-phase antioxidant stabilizers (such as pentaerythritol tetrakis(di-tert-butyl hydroxyhydrocinnamate) and tocopheryl acetate) and the water-phase active ingredients, but also substantially improves system stability through multiple mechanisms, including the inhibition of oil droplet ripening and the enhancement of oil-water interfacial film toughness via the “salting-out effect” of polyols. After 60 days of accelerated testing at 50°C, the product’s color and pH value remained stable, with no issues such as phase separation or browning observed.

Furthermore, the precise formulation and staged addition of auxiliary components such as emulsifiers and thickeners in the manufacturing process not only ensure a lightweight skin feel but also mitigate the risk of irritation associated with simply increasing additive levels, thereby achieving a balance among efficacy, stability, and user experience.

From the perspective of current market layout, the fields of multi-effect radiance-enhancing brightening serum complexes and medical dressings have formed“Efficacy Segmentation, Technological Competition”This landscape features skincare products focused on the combined benefits of whitening and anti-aging, as well as medical-grade dressings primarily designed for repair. Competing products across these categories differ in their emphasis on ingredients, technologies, and application scenarios:

Huanyanji Whitening, Spot-Fading, and Anti-Wrinkle Essence Cream (Little White Jar)As a bestselling product in the 2025 market, it holds the Chinese special-use cosmetic certification for whitening and leverages dual patented technologies (e.g., ZL201310526385.0) to ensure the high purity and efficacy of its anti-wrinkle ingredients, making it suitable for all skin types, especially sensitive skin.

Dr. Ci:Labo 377 Radiant White Intensive Spot-Correcting CreamWith “targeted spot fading” as its core selling point, it features high-concentration 377 (phenylethyl resorcinol), which blocks melanin production at the source, and is compounded with vitamin C derivatives and resveratrol to enhance antioxidant effects. Its advantage lies in its strong specificity for spot reduction.

Lancôme Absolue Premium White CreamPositioned in the high-end anti-aging and whitening market, the core ingredients are “Everlasting Rose Condensate + High-Concentration Pro-Xylane.” The former promotes cellular autophagy to metabolize dull cells, while the latter stimulates collagen production to improve age-related sallowness, complemented by ellagic acid for auxiliary melanin inhibition.

Estée Lauder Advanced Night Radiance Brightening Essence Cream ((Repair-type Whitening Dressing Homologous Technology) Although classified as skincare, it adopts the medical-grade concept of "repair first, then whiten." Its core is the specialized AF3 formula: AA2G (stable Vitamin C) and licorice root extract are used to block melanin signals, while molasses extract alleviates micro-inflammation at the skin's base. Meanwhile, the brand's classic repair ingredients are incorporated to strengthen the skin barrier.

Overall, the current market features numerous similar products, each with its own focus. This patent establishes differentiated advantages in “combined efficacy, mildness, and stability” through a “Gentiana macrophylla extract synergistic enhancement + polyol–high-shear stabilization system,” thereby providing technical reference for the extension of medical dressings toward “functional brightening.”

* Patent transaction information is provided by China Technology Exchange