China's acne track is undergoing a fundamental shift.
Over the past decade, ingredients such as salicylic acid and azelaic acid have been repeatedly popularized, and consumers have long completed their "ingredient enlightenment." Once ingredient education is sufficient, the industry's competitive focus is shifting from "which ingredients to use" to "how ingredients take effect and why acne recurs." Scientific language is gradually becoming the standard discourse in the acne track.
At this juncture, IRY, a scientific skincare brand focused on problem skin management, has unveiled a national invention patent, using the dual-layer intervention logic of "bacteriostasis + biofilm intervention" to address a core question in the acne track: How should recurring acne be solved?
Behind this patent lies a complete chain from mechanism research to formula implementation, from efficacy verification to user service. IRY is using this system to respond to the increasingly clear "systematic competition" era in the acne track.
As ingredient information becomes more transparent, single-point ingredients can hardly constitute a barrier. The industry's discourse power is thus shifting from "ingredient names" to "mechanism research."
One focus of mechanism research is on the biofilm of Cutibacterium acnes. Acne recurrence is not only about the quantity and activity of bacteria, but also about the aggregation state of the bacterial cells. They form biofilms, which, in layman's terms, means building a "protective shield" for themselves. This shield makes it difficult for conventional antibacterial ingredients to penetrate and makes acne more likely to recur.
In recent years, the role of Cutibacterium acnes biofilm in the pathogenesis of acne has become a research hotspot in dermatology. A related study published in 2025 in the journal Daily Chemical Science verified the inhibitory ability of the composition against Cutibacterium acnes biofilm and its improvement effect on facial acne. In the same year, multiple papers in international journals also focused on biofilm-targeting strategies, exploring interventions on Cutibacterium acnes biofilm through quorum sensing inhibition, virulence gene regulation, and other methods.
▍Cutibacterium acnes biofilm in a sebum-like environment. Image source: Microorganisms, 2024
The heat from the research side is being transmitted to the market side.
According to data from Moojing Market Intelligence, from 2025 month 3 to 2026 year 2 month, the market size of acne skincare products on mainstream e-commerce platforms reached 261.9 hundred million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10%. However, at the same time, according to National Medical Products Administration filing data, the total number of acne efficacy product filings in the past year decreased by approximately 10.29% year-on-year. Taken together, this data shows that demand in the acne track has not shrunk; the contraction is occurring on the supply side. Acne is a high-risk efficacy claim, and regulatory and compliance thresholds continue to rise. Brands lacking R&D capabilities, efficacy evaluation data, and compliance capabilities are exiting or shrinking.
In other words, the acne market is still growing, but the growth is no longer evenly distributed.
According to data from User Said, in 2025 year, among the top 20 skincare brands on mainstream e-commerce, domestic brands already occupy 9 seats. Moojing Market Intelligence's report also points out that in acne-related subcategories such as men's facial care and T-zone care, the barriers of the top 5 brands continue to strengthen, and the market is concentrating toward the leaders.
When competition shifts from betting on a single ingredient to "building a verifiable system," R&D, formulation, efficacy evaluation, filing compliance, and user service all become fixed investments. The heavier the investment, the more it tests a brand's systematic capabilities; the stronger the systematic capabilities, the easier it is for market share to concentrate toward the leaders.
Therefore, the acne track is entering a "systematic competition" stage. It tests who can string together mechanism research, formula implementation, efficacy verification, compliance filing, and user operations into a complete chain. For domestic brands, this is both an opportunity and a threshold. Whoever can first complete the systematic transformation from ingredients to mechanisms will have the chance to represent domestic scientific research strength at the table in the next phase of acne competition.
IRY's answer lies in an invention patent.
This national invention patent, titled "An acne-removing and oil-controlling composition and its application in skincare products," with patent number ZL202410385729.9, was authorized by the China National Intellectual Property Administration in 2024 year 11 month. IRY has named the related technology "targeted biofilm acne technology," and its core logic is to integrate two pathways—bacteriostasis and biofilm intervention—within the same composition formula system.
IRY innovatively integrates the two pathways of "bacteriostasis + biofilm intervention" into the same patented composition formula system, forming a "dual-layer intervention" technical approach.
Its innovation lies in setting up two pathways simultaneously within the same patented acne-removing and oil-controlling composition system. One pathway uses piroctone olamine for bacteriostasis, intervening in acne-related microbial factors; the other uses plant extracts for biofilm intervention, targeting the protective structure formed by bacterial aggregation. The two pathways are combined into the same patented composition, forming IRY's "dual-layer intervention" technical logic.
The core of this technology can be summarized as: first dismantle the "protective shield," then gently regulate.
The judgment behind this is that for recurring acne, bacteriostasis alone is not enough. The quantity of bacteria must be managed, and the aggregation state of bacteria must also be managed. If only bacteriostasis is used without biofilm intervention, the protective shield remains, and acne is prone to recur. If only biofilm intervention is used without bacteriostasis, the risk of disrupting the microbial balance is difficult to control. Only by placing both pathways in the same system can a balance between efficacy and gentleness be achieved.
But the real test of "dual-layer intervention" is implementation.
The balance between bacteriostasis and gentleness is the most difficult scale to grasp in formula development. If bacteriostasis is too strong, it can easily affect the microbial balance. If too gentle, it cannot suppress acne-related microorganisms. Biofilm intervention is an even newer topic in the industry, with no existing formula to copy. Combining the two pathways into the same composition while ensuring both gentleness and efficacy is the real challenge.
IRY's solution is to integrate the two pathways into the same patented composition system, allowing them to work together.
In vitro evaluation of the patented technology shows that the composition acts on biofilm indicators, with an inhibition rate of 61.3%/61.6%, and does not affect the survival rate of beneficial bacteria. Human efficacy evaluation shows that in 60 patients with grade II-III acne, over 28 days, the lesion area decreased by 54.61%. 83.3% recognized improvement in full-face acne, and 100% agreed it was gentle and non-irritating. The related research results have been published in Daily Chemical Science.
From user problem insight, to mechanism research, to composition development, experimental verification, patent authorization, and product application, this chain is complete. Behind a patent is a scientific research system from mechanism research to product implementation. This is the true foundation of IRY's "dual-layer intervention." And this confidence comes not only from a patent, but also from a complete system from laboratory to user.
A patent is a point; a system is a plane. IRY is continuously transforming technology into products, building a complete chain from mechanism research to formula implementation, and then to efficacy verification and user service.
R&D is the starting point of this chain.
IRY has established 8 specialized laboratories, with Sebumeter tracking changes in sebum, Tewameter monitoring transepidermal water loss, and VISIA7 recording images of skin lesions. The equipment itself is not scarce; what is scarce is the continuous investment of time and data accumulation behind the instruments. Ten years of core topic research and ten years of R&D experience, applied to the acne treatment line, constitute a sufficiently long investment cycle.
Products are an extension of this chain.
The "Clear Acne Rejuvenation Series" carries the direction of acne treatment R&D, addressing the core pain point of "recurring acne"; the "Energy-Infused Repair Series" targets issues such as sensitivity, redness, and pigmentation from acne marks, corresponding to the extended needs of people with acne-prone skin; directions such as gentle acid use and oil control for acne cover different problems like oily acne, blackheads and whiteheads, and comedones. Classification by problem, stratification by skin type. This is IRY's most concrete response to "managing problematic skin."
Service is the endpoint of this chain.
IRY has built a closed loop comprising six stages: skin consultation, skincare regimen recommendations, product usage guidance, collection of usage experiences, effect tracking and feedback, and service evaluation optimization, while providing one-on-one customized services. The value of this system lies in transforming one-time purchases into long-term management relationships. This precisely echoes IRY's brand mission: to convey healthy skincare concepts and lifestyles, helping every user awaken healthy skin. The brand philosophy of "Scientific Skincare, Changing Lives" finds its concrete application here.
From laboratory to product, and from product to user, IRY's systemic logic can be summarized into three layers: the foundation consists of patents and efficacy data, the middle layer comprises the product matrix and classification logic, and the outer layer is the service system. The superposition of these three layers forms the systemic foundation of IRY as a scientific skincare brand focused on managing problematic skin. This is also a specific example of domestic acne treatment brands moving from "using good ingredients" to "building their own systems."
Final Thoughts
From a national invention patent, to a functional scientific research system, and then to a classified management system for problematic skin, IRY uses one patent to actually present a larger answer.
The competitive logic in the acne treatment sector is changing, moving from "using good ingredients" to "building one's own system." Those who can link mechanism research, formula implementation, efficacy verification, and user services into a complete chain will be able to stand firm in the next stage of competition.
IRY has chosen a heavier path, which is also a longer-term path. This path points not only to acne treatment itself, but to a systematic solution for managing problematic skin.
This is precisely the answer that IRY, as a scientific skincare brand focused on managing problematic skin, wishes to convey: awakening healthy skin through science. From patents to systems, from technology to services, IRY is turning this statement into a verifiable chain. Science is the long-term solution for problematic skin. And long-term trust is accumulated inch by inch along this chain. IRY's new story of scientific skincare has just begun.