Equipment and methods

Organic synthesis: We synthesize human skin barrier lipids, their labeled variants, and compounds that enhance skin drug delivery for research on lipid function and barrier restoration.

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC): Used for analyzing and quantifying synthesized compounds (Shimadzu Prominence instrument and Shimadzu LC 40).

Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS): Used to identify, quantify, and characterize complex mixture (Shimadzu LCMS-8050).

Langmuir monolayers with Brewster angle microscopy (BAM): Used to study lipid films and molecular organization at the air–water interface. The samples can be visualized by atomic force microscopy (Langmuir–Blodgett trough, KSV NIMA; Nanosurf easyScan 2 FlexAFM device, Nanosurf AG).

​Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR): Used for chemical characterization and structural analysis of skin barrier lipids (Nicolet 6700 spectrometer, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham; Bruker INVENIO FT-IR spectrometer, Bruker Optik GmbH).

Confocal Raman microspectrometry: Used to visualize molecular composition and distribution in samples (WITec).

X-ray diffraction (XRD): Used to analyse the structural organization of the stratum corneum lipids and help in formulation development and characterization of the compounds.

Quartz Crystal Microbalance with Dissipation monitoring (QCM-D), optical tensiometer, human skin, Franz diffusion cells, TEWL, biological safety cabinet fume hood etc.

Through collaborations with other departments, we have access to additional advanced instrumentation, including a Zetasizer, confocal microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and fluorescence microscopy.