Beauty begins with your biology. I built Romilly Wilde, The Biology of Beauty® on that idea, and in September our research was put in front of the people who study skin for a living.
The ESDR
The European Society for Dermatological Research was founded in 1970. It is the largest investigative dermatology society in Europe, with more than a thousand members. Its founders wanted a meeting where the science counted for more than the seniority of whoever was presenting it, and that still shapes how it works.
Abstracts are reviewed blind. The committee judges the study without knowing who sent it. Ours was accepted for presentation at the 55th Annual Meeting in Heidelberg, 9 to 12 September 2026, the first year the programme has had a dedicated session on skin ageing.
An accepted abstract is a reviewed summary of a study, and a full peer-reviewed paper is something else. So, I describe ours as accepted for presentation, because that is exactly what it is.
What we measured
When skin is exposed to UV-A and urban pollution, its proteins oxidise. One form of that damage, protein carbonylation, is irreversible and can be measured. That is why I care about it. It turns damage you cannot see into a number.
OxiProteomics, the laboratory that runs our studies, kept real human skin alive in the lab and exposed it to UV-A, or to UV-A with pollution particles. Our Tripeptide Antioxidant Day Cream was applied before exposure. Our Peptide Longevity Serum was applied after.
- Tripeptide Antioxidant Day Cream: 64% less collagen I loss than untreated samples, in laboratory skin models.
- Peptide Longevity Serum: 91% less UV-A-induced protein damage than untreated samples, in laboratory skin models.
Download the full research poster (PDF)
Both results were statistically significant. The day cream is not a sunscreen. Wear it with SPF.
This is a laboratory study on a small number of skin samples. It measures what happens to the proteins. It is not a clinical trial on people, and it does not tell you how a face looks after eight weeks. It also covers two of our five products. The other three are built on the same formulation science but have not been through the laboratory, and I would rather tell you that than let you assume otherwise.
Why it matters to me
The ESDR is not a beauty industry event. A cosmetic formula presented there is reviewed by the same people, on the same terms, as work from a university or hospital laboratory.
Getting there took a measurable biomarker, a method scientists recognise, results with statistics attached, and scientists from another laboratory willing to put their names next to mine. That is the standard I hold Romilly Wilde to. We only formulate where there is a measurable biological effect on skin.
The abstract is due to appear in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, and we will link to it here once it is published. One study, two products. It is a start, and we will keep measuring.
Susie Willis
Founder, Romilly Wilde