PDRN without salmon: what I learnt about ExoPDRN at the DERMICA training

When clients asked me in recent weeks about PDRN , it was almost always the same sentence: “I’ve read about it – do you have it too?” The active ingredient is in every women’s magazine, big cosmetics brands advertise with it, and doctors inject it as polynucleotides. Since August I have been working with the ExoPDRN Solution by DERMICA on the GoldPen. On 14 September I took part in the manufacturer’s training on it – an hour and a half with the field team, the complete slide deck and lots of questions from the group. Here is what I took away.

What PDRN actually is

PDRN stands for polydeoxyribonucleotides: short-chain DNA building blocks that the skin recognises as its own. The chains are shorter than in the “polynucleotides” used in medicine – which is why PDRN may be used cosmetically, in my studio via needling with the DERMICA GoldPen.

Salmon or laboratory?

For me this was the key insight of the evening: most of the PDRN on the market is extracted from the gonads of male salmon – a foreign animal protein. DERMICA takes a different route. The DNA building blocks are biotechnologically through fermentation with the lactic acid bacterium Lactobacillus plantarum produced, in a clean room, “rebuilt to blueprint”, as the speaker put it.

What does that give you? No animal protein, no fish protein. Every batch has the same purity and the same molecular weight. And production needs no animal, no land, no water – it is independent of soil, climate and season. The manufacturer has this certified: COSMOS-certified, vegan, halal. One sentence from the slide deck stuck with me: “The value lies not in the origin, but in purity, production control, consistency of fragmentation and reproducibility.”

Four active ingredients in one ampoule

DERMICA calls them the four pillars of the formulation:

• PDRN – sodium DNA of microbial origin, for cellular regeneration.
• Plant-based exosomes from comfrey stem cells – tiny vesicles containing small RNA molecules, amino acids, lipids and proteins, the messengers between cells. They come in liquid form, not freeze-dried, because drying damages structure and function.
• Glycine and proline – two amino acids from which the skin builds its collagen structure.
• Hyaluronic acid in several molecular weights – for moisture at the surface and deeper down.

And then the sentence that changed the way I work: “It works perfectly on its own.” The ampoule is a complete solution. It is not mixed with the Lifting, Revitalizing or Hyaluron ampoule – it is used on its own.

Four things that surprised me

1. 0.5 millimetres are enough. In cosmetic needling we work on the face at 0.5 mm. According to the manufacturer, the ampoule is concentrated enough to get you there. Deeper is the domain of medicine – and that is not my field.

2. The skin needs 28 days. “Give the skin time,” the speaker said. The result of a session shows after about four weeks – not the next morning. That is why there is exactly one month between sessions.

3. The appointment format changes. Deep cleansing, brow plucking, tinting – none of that belongs in an ExoPDRN appointment. The appointment is “regeneration, not wellness”: 50 minutes of focused needling, finished with the COLLAGEN FERMENTED MASK. Anything that puts strain on the skin we do one to two weeks beforehand at a separate appointment.

4. Three sessions, then maintenance. The manufacturer’s protocol: one session a month for three months. After that, a top-up every two months as needed.

What the manufacturer has documented

In a user study with 22 participants, 76 % reported an improved complexion, more moisture and less moisture loss through the skin – a subjective assessment, documented by DERMICA Laboratoires. A series of images of one participant was also shown on day 0, on day 28 after the first session and on day 56 after the second: an increasingly calmer, more even complexion – with the ampoule alone, no other active ingredients. The images belong to the manufacturer, which is why you won’t see them here; I’ll gladly show them to you at your appointment.

What you can realistically expect: a complexion that looks calmer, more even and fresher, more moisture and a plumper skin feel, firmness and skin quality – visibly, built up over three sessions. Every skin reacts differently; what makes sense for you we discuss in the skin analysis at the start of the appointment.

How I use ExoPDRN in Trier

The first session is a chance to get to know it: skin analysis, 50 minutes of needling with the GoldPen and the ExoPDRN ampoule, collagen mask, aftercare. If you decide on the 3-session course within four weeks, I credit the introductory session – you only pay the difference. Until 31 October 2026 the first session is available at the introductory price; the current prices, all areas and the four options – Book Appointment, buy a treatment, buy a course, book a course – can be found on the ExoPDRN page.

Who is it for? All skin types, regardless of age. For skin that looks tired and stressed, for the first signs of skin ageing, for sensitive skin when it is free of irritation – and for anyone who wants PDRN but no fish protein, whether out of conviction or because they live vegan or halal. For men there is the same ampoule with its own protocol for beard and shaving.

Book introductory session · All about ExoPDRN · All Premium Needling ampoules

Sources and transparency

Manufacturer information: DERMICA Laboratoires, slide deck “The LINE – ExoPDRN Solution” and online training with the DERMICA/ARTIGO field team on 14/09/2026. Study, certification and manufacturing details are the manufacturer’s statements, not our own measurements. Image: © DERMICA Laboratoires. Cosmetic treatment, not a medical service; results vary from person to person.