The results from my experiment on the effects No. 9 had on human skin in just one week were surprising. If you note from my earlier post, this first round of the experiment was mostly to make sure my embedding techniques were proper for this kind of test. However, upon looking at the difference between the experimental and the control, the results were so significant, I had to post them.
The difference in the amount of collagen, viable skin cells and remarkable tissue in the sample that was treated with No. 9 compared to the control was pretty amazing, and not something that I expected. I expected a small difference, at the very most, because it was just a one week study. I was not expecting the two samples to be polar opposite.
If you note the control, which just had a treatment of water over one week, there are little to no viable skin cells, no significant collagen present, and overall the skin looks unremarkable. In a real life application, this would just give the appearance of dull, thin and aged skin.
In contrast, the No. 9 sample was highly complex, with an abundance of collagen (noted by the dark staining patterns), an abundance of cell nuclei indicating viable skin cells, and overall just "more" going on in the sample. In a real life application, this would give the appearance of younger, fuller looking skin.
Since the experiment was a successful one, I am going to begin another experiment that is more complex, since this initial experiment was really just a test of technique, and not originally intended to yield meaningful data. But since the data was so meaningful here, the next thing to do is to ask more questions and continue on experimenting.
Experimental Outline:
This new experiment will use a larger sample size to get a more accurate picture of the cellular changes that occur from applying OUMERE over a period of time.
I am going to be using live human skin samples of a light phototype (just because it is easier to view under the microscope) obtained from the same source as before. I will be using an n=5 for the experimental samples.
The experimental samples will be exposed to OUMERE Skin Care over a one week period. The morning will consist of applying No. 9, UVR, The Advancement and Serum Bioluminelle. The evening will consist of applying UVR Concentrate, The Advancement Concentrate, The Eye Serum and Serum Bioluminelle.
The control samples will receive a topical application of Deionized Water in the morning and evening.
Samples will be incubated 24 hours a day, for 7 days.
After the 7 day period is over, I am going to fix the tissue samples in Bouin's fixative again, because it seemed to work well from the results of the initial experiment. Once fixation is complete, I will do the dehydration steps with alcohol, then embed the samples in the epoxy resin.
I believe that sectioning the samples in 1000 micron thick sections was a good amount because there is a lot to see in these samples. If it was thinner, I could probably get a little bit more detail under the scope, but I also risk having part of the section fall apart. I am going to try both and see what provides better images.
Please stay tuned to the blog for the updated status on this experiment, which will be posted in the upcoming weeks.