Abstract: An applicator for applying cosmetic agents into human skin, comprising: (a) a base, (b) a plurality of microneedles fixed to said base and projecting therefrom a distance sufficient to penetrate into the skin, said microneedles being made of a material that is capable of disintegration and dispersion into the skin, and (c) a cosmetic agent carried by said microneedles for delivery by said microneedles into the skin.

Abstract: An applicator for applying cosmetic agents into human skin, comprising: (a) a base, (b) a plurality of dissolvable microneedles fixed to said base and projecting therefrom a distance sufficient to penetrate into the skin, said microneedles being made of a material that is capable of disintegration and dispersion into the skin, (c) a cosmetic agent carried by said microneedles for delivery by said microneedles into the skin, and (d) wherein said dissolvable microneedles are configured as a dissolvable exterior shell and said shell encapsulates one or more cosmetic agents.

Abstract: The invention relates to cosmetic or pharmaceutical composition comprising an oil-containing biliquid foam dispersed in a salt-containing aqueous phase, in which the aqueous phase, having a pH of less than about 7, is gelled by a polymeric sulfonic acid. A particularly preferred gellant is ammonium poly(acryldimethyltauramide-co-vinylformamide). Unlike many other types of gels, these gels are stable at an acid pH in the presence of substantial amounts of electrolytes, and therefore are useful in delivering acidic active components.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a delivery system for topical application to the skin comprising a freeze-dried, partially cross-linked polymeric gel membrane which can be reversibly returned to a dissolvable gel form upon the application of a wetting agent. The membrane can be used to deliver biologically active agents to the skin.

Abstract: The invention relates to cosmetic or pharmaceutical composition comprising an oil-containing biliquid foam dispersed in a salt-containing aqueous phase, in which the aqueous phase, having a pH of less than about 7, is gelled by a polymeric sulfonic acid. A particularly preferred gellant is ammonium poly(acryldimethyltauramide-co-vinylformamide). Unlike many other types of gels, these gels are stable at an acid pH in the presence of substantial amounts of electrolytes, and therefore are useful in delivering acidic active components.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a cosmetic or pharmaceutical emulsion for topical application to the skin comprising an irritating agent and at least one non-disruptive emulsifier. In a preferred embodiment the irritating agent is a retinoid. The invention also provides a method for decreasing the irritation on the skin caused by an irritating active agent in a topical cosmetic or pharmaceutical emulsion which comprises employing as an emulsifier at least one of an alkyl polyoside, a grafted water soluble protein on a hydrophobic backbone, and lecithin.

Abstract: The present invention relates to stable water-containing cosmetic or pharmaceutical compositions which comprise a biologically active agent and an enzyme-based oxygen-scavenging antioxidant system. The composition preferably comprises an antioxidant system comprising effective amounts of an oxidase, a substrate for the oxidase, and a peroxidase, and at least one species oxidizable by hydrogen peroxide, such as iodide and/or thiocyanate anions.