Skin care success
Building upon its success in the Japanese skin care market, Maz World hopes that the combination of Japan’s pioneering research with Hong Kong’s biotechnology success, the research and developed technology can support the commercialisation of the technology for the country’s hair care products.
In Japan, Zeal Cosmetics has utilised the ostrich antibody in their skin care products.
"The ostrich antibody has demonstrated excellent effectiveness in skin care by balancing the bacteria environment on skin, and also showed promising results for daily care products," emphasised Osamu Maeda, President of Zeal Cosmetics.
Discovering ostrich’s benefits
Maz World has invested in ostrich antibody technology for over 20 years, following scientific research efforts led by Prof Yasuhiro Tsukamoto from the Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences at Kyoto Prefectural University.
The team first recognised the potential benefits of ostrich antibodies, which include their strong immune system and high resistance against viral infections, and explored their various personal care-related applications.
Ostrich antibody products today, are gearing up towards development in the markets concerning various health concerns, cultures and living habits.
"Ostrich antibody can be produced in large scale at lower cost, with consistent quality and is safe for humans,” said Prof Yasuhiro Tsukamoto from the Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences at Kyoto Prefectural University.
“Ostrich antibody is resistant to heat as well as acidic and alkalinity levels, which gives the technology extremely high business potential for application for many products and various manufacturing processes,” Tsukamoto went on to say.
Hong Kong and biotechnology
Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), a statutory body, comprises Science Park, InnoCentre and Industrial Estates that team up to build a vibrant innovation and technology ecosystem.
"Hong Kong is an ideal location for Maz World to commercialise ostrich antibody technology, with an international environment to test new products and look for strategic collaboration partners and investment opportunities,” said Gene Shigekawa, Managing Partner of Maz World.
With two medical schools containing a clinical trial centre and over 80 biomedical technology enterprises at Hong Kong Science Park, the biotechnology hub was the natural choice to further its development. Looking ahead, Maz World has approach local universities and R&D centres to discuss research collaboration.
"Hong Kong has an excellent environment for innovation-driven businesses to scale up and succeed on the global stage. The free flow of talents, goods and services, funds and information are critical success factors for technology businesses,” Albert Wong, CEO, HKSTP, elaborated.
The process
By utilising innovative ingredients and technological ecosystems, HKSTP focuses on healthy ageing as a key strategy. Their aim is to build upon R&D efforts to work towards preventive care and medical services that affect the larger society.
Led by Professor Tsukamoto, the team extracted antibodies from the yolk of unfertilised ostrich eggs. This process, which does not harm the animal, collects four grammes of purified antibody from each egg. Due to ostriches' long reproductive life, natural antibodies can be mass manufactured, which lowers the cost of using ostrich antibodies for hair loss prevention compared to other techniques.