Via Medgadget: Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals is testing a rice-grain sized implant that when placed under the skin induces a tan and provides increased UV protection.

The dermatology-focused biotech, formerly known as Epitan, had initially marketed its leading drug as a tanning product, saying it produces eumelanin, a pigment which can protect skin from UV exposure.

But under its new name Clinuvel, the company said the same drug, CUV1647, is also a serious clinical treatment for a range of skin conditions.

Clinuvel said those conditions include polymorphous light eruption (PLE) or sun poisoning and actinic keratosis (AK), a skin cancer precursor.

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