Your next skin cream may come from NASA's outer space science

Do you want to avoid premature wrinkling? Don't smoke, wear sunscreen, and drink plenty of water, and try to limit your time in outer space.

Even without gravity, the skin of astronauts takes a beating. Spacefarers say they get dry, flaky, and thin skin because they lack natural oils that keep cells plump. The downsides of spaceflight, which alters gene behavior and seems to speed up the aging process, could be a key for dermatological researchers.

Colgate-Palmolive, the toothpaste giant with a newly expanded skincare division, is interested in the environment in space. The company is about to use the International Space Station as a test-bed for skin research, following its recent use of the space lab for an oral health study. NASA invites private businesses to work on research at the space station.

Human skin tissue culture plates will be launched on a rocket from NASA. A supply craft containing 8,200 pounds of research materials and crew provisions will include the cells from a single donor. The station will be reached on February 21.

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Colgate wants to study the molecule and cell-level changes underlying skin degradation in samples exposed to the space station's microgravity.

The experiment will run on the ground. Our bodies naturally repair skin, and there are clues about the biological mechanisms that happen when that happens.

She said during a NASA call with reporters that the findings will help identify areas for early intervention in skin health and help guide the development of skincare innovations across all of Colgate-Palmolive brands.

Colgate convinced NASA to devote time, lab space, and crew to a study that may yield morewrinkle creams.

Astronaut Barry "Butch" Wilmore conducts rodent research aboard the International Space Station. Credit: NASA

Critical functions for enduring lengthy deep space missions include regulating body temperature and protecting against infections. Colgate representatives say that thin, fragile skin among elderly people on Earth makes them more susceptible to cuts and bruises and that anti-aging skin treatments might sound like a voyage to the Fountain of Youth.

Colgate said in a NASA experiment overview that any loss of functional or structural stability in skin is a potential source of other health problems. In other words, there are more than skin-deep issues.

The space station's weak gravity makes it a difficult environment for bodies. Skin damage is a normal part of life. It seems like a hyper-drive for the aging process.

The microgravity environment is linked to rapid aging of astronauts' skin. Credit: Dimitris66 / Getty Images

A previous three-month space station experiment involving a small sample of mice found the rodents experienced a 15 percent loss of skin thickness and a 42 percent increase in newly forming collagen, according to a 2015 study published in Nature. The rise was thought to be due to a higher breakdown and turnover rate of the substance.

On Earth, astronauts are able to maintain hygiene the same way. The space station crew use wet wipes to wash their hair. There are no machines to wash clothes. According to a recent scientific literature review, these factors contribute to more frequent skin problems.

Over the years, the space station crew has had skin conditions such as scaly rash, nails coming off, skin irritation, hair follicle inflammation, delayed wound healing, and skin cancer. There were 33 cases of skin cancer among astronauts, compared to 27 cases among 912 earthbound control subjects. The rate among the astronauts is almost threefold, according to the same paper.

Human skin cells will be on a porous surface to mimic the 3D organization of skin tissue. The plates will arrive at the space station seven days after scientists have grown the skin. Tissue sets will be frozen after a certain amount of time in space. Scientists can study the samples after their spaceflight.

We expect to see earlier and more dramatic signs of tissue damage, and we hope that we will see different genes.