Singapore: France-based cosmetic giant L'Oreal has joined hands with bio-engineering start-up Organovo to 3D-print human skin. Organovo, specializes in 3D-printing human organs and tissue and has partnered with many pharmaceutical comapnies and academic institutions in the past.

L'Oreal said in its press realease that the 3D printed skin will be used for new product testing, to ensure safety of products. L'Oreal currently grows skin samples from tissues donated by plastic surgery patients.

It produces more than 100,000, 0.5 sq cm skin samples per year and grows nine varieties across all ages and ethnicities. As per the new deal, L'Oreal will use Organovo's NovoGen Bioprinting Platform to print skin tissue.

The process involves identifying key architectural and compositional elements of the targeted tissue and creating a specially formulated bio-ink,that is capable of replicating the body's functions.

L'Oreal said in a statement, "Our partnership will not only bring about new advanced in vitro methods for evaluating product safety and performance, but the potential for where this new field of technology and research can take us is boundless."

Organovo made headlines last year when it began selling its 3D-printed livers to pharmaceutical companies as a cheap way to test new drugs.