Biomarker-Based Methods For Formulating Compositions That Improve Skin Quality And Reduce The Visible Signs Of Aging In Skin For Individuals In A Selected Population

A method for formulating a personal care composition useful for improving the stratum corneum barrier in a human subject who is a member of a selected population of subjects, comprising:

• (a) generating one or more control skin profiles for two or more subjects in a select population of subjects wherein the subjects in the select population have dry or damaged skin;
• (b) contacting at least a portion of skin of the subjects with a test composition, extracting one or more skin samples from each of the subjects, and generating from the extracted samples one or more test profiles for the subjects;
• (c) comparing the one or more test profiles to the one or more control profiles and identifying the test composition as effective if the test profile is directionally shifted away from the control profile and shows at least one of the following biomarker changes (i) a decrease in one or more inflammatory cytokines, (ii) an increase in one or more natural moisturizing factors;
• and (iii) an increase in one or more lipids.