Juvelook vs Rejuran: two different skin boosters, compared by what they are and how they work

Juvelook vs Rejuran: the short answer

Juvelook and Rejuran® are two different kinds of injectable. Juvelook is a collagen stimulator made of poly-D,L-lactic acid (PDLLA) particles mixed with non-cross-linked hyaluronic acid. Rejuran® Healer is a polynucleotide (PN) injection made from purified salmon DNA fragments, often grouped with PDRN. Neither is a filler, and neither is designed to lift sagging skin.

Because they work in different ways, the useful question is not which one wins but which one fits the concern a doctor finds on examination. In broad terms:

• Juvelook prompts the skin to build new collagen gradually around tiny particles. It is used for texture, enlarged pores and fine crepiness, and change builds over about two to three months.
• Rejuran® Healer is designed to support the skin's own repair processes. It is used for thin, dull, finely lined or textured skin, and post-acne skin, and change tends to show sooner.

At SkinRev Lab, both injections are performed by Dr Sin Yong, medical adviser, after a skin assessment, and both are priced at consultation. SkinRev Lab also offers a needle-less Rejuran® PDRN Facial, a different, non-medical treatment performed by Aesthetic Therapists, from S$288 before GST. This page compares the two injectables using published papers and does not rank them.

What Juvelook is

Juvelook is a powder of poly-D,L-lactic acid (PDLLA) particles combined with non-cross-linked hyaluronic acid, made by VAIM in Korea. The powder is mixed with sterile water shortly before injection.

PDLLA is a copolymer of the L- and D-forms of polylactic acid and is mainly amorphous rather than crystalline. That distinguishes it from poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA), the older collagen stimulator, which is semi-crystalline. A 2024 review of injectable skin boosters describes Juvelook as a PDLLA product mixed with non-cross-linked hyaluronic acid and groups it with the collagen-stimulating boosters.

The two ingredients do different jobs:

• Hyaluronic acid binds water and gives a brief early hydration effect.
• PDLLA particles stay in the skin for a while and prompt gradual collagen production around them. This is the part that builds change over weeks to months.

How it is mixed and placed matters. Dr Sin Yong adjusts the dilution to the goal: more dilute and shallower for skin quality, less dilute and deeper for folds. The injection uses a fine needle, a cannula or an injector device, and a session takes about 30 to 45 minutes with numbing cream. A related product, Juvelook Volume, is placed deeper for volume; it is a separate treatment discussed at consultation. For how PDLLA compares with PLLA, see our PDLLA vs PLLA comparison, and for the treatment itself, our Juvelook page.

What Rejuran is

Rejuran® is a Korean brand of polynucleotide injection made from DNA fragments purified from salmon. Rejuran® Healer is the version injected for overall skin quality; finer and more concentrated versions exist for the eye area and for depressed acne scars.

Two terms are used for these DNA-based ingredients, and they are often used interchangeably:

• PDRN (polydeoxyribonucleotide) has traditionally been described as a mixture of DNA fragments of roughly 50 to 1,500 kDa, sourced mainly from the sperm of chum salmon and rainbow trout.
• PN (polynucleotide) usually means longer chains. A 2025 review proposed a cut-off: below 1,500 kDa is PDRN, and 1,500 kDa or above is PN. That is a proposal, not an agreed rule, and several of its authors had industry ties.

Injectable boosters are usually the longer-chain PN type and are given by a doctor. Cosmetic-grade PDRN is used in facials and skincare. A product label alone does not tell you the chain length or concentration, or whether it is meant for injection, so ask what exactly is being used.

Rejuran® is not a filler and does not add volume. It is injected into the skin as many small droplets, about 1 cm apart, and a session takes 30 to 45 minutes including numbing. Because it comes from fish DNA, tell the doctor if you have a fish or seafood allergy. Our Rejuran® page explains the injected and needle-less routes, and our PN vs PDRN guide goes further into the science.

How each one works in the skin

Juvelook works mainly by provoking a controlled tissue response that leads to new collagen, while Rejuran® works mainly by signalling to skin cells and acting as a hydrating scaffold. Both end up involving fibroblasts, the cells that make collagen, but they get there by different routes.

PDLLA (Juvelook). A 2024 review summarises laboratory work showing that PDLLA particles activate immune cells called macrophages, which release growth signals that encourage collagen production. Human tissue studies have shown more dermal collagen and elastic fibres after PDLLA. The review also notes that PLLA shows volume effects that increase over time, while PDLLA produces consistent effects. Because the particles are a physical material in the skin, they cannot be dissolved like hyaluronic acid filler.

PN and PDRN (Rejuran®). After injection, the DNA fragments are broken down by the body's own enzymes into smaller pieces. Reviews describe two main pathways:

• The pieces act on adenosine A2A receptors on fibroblasts, which are involved in calming inflammation, forming new small blood vessels and supporting collagen production.
• They supply building blocks that cells can reuse to make new DNA, called the salvage pathway.

Longer PN chains also bind water and can form a gel-like scaffold in the skin. Much of this mechanism comes from laboratory and animal work; a 2017 review describes human clinical studies of PDRN mainly in wound healing rather than aesthetics.

Juvelook and Rejuran side by side

The table sets out the published and stated facts for each injectable as offered at SkinRev Lab. It describes differences; it does not rank the two.

Neither is suitable during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or over an active skin infection. Sessions and timings are typical figures from our treatment pages and published studies; your doctor will advise on your own plan.

Sessions, onset and downtime

Both are given as a course rather than a single visit, both have short downtime measured in days, and they differ mainly in how quickly change shows and in what the first week looks like.

Juvelook. At SkinRev Lab a course is usually two to three sessions about four weeks apart, followed by maintenance. In a published split-face trial, the PDLLA product was given as three injections four weeks apart. Afterwards, small bumps and needle marks usually settle within a few days, and bruising can last about a week. Dr Sin Yong massages the treated area at the end of the session to spread the particles. Avoid make-up on the injection points, saunas and heavy exercise for 24 hours, and exfoliating acids and facials on the area for a week. A firm lump that lasts beyond two weeks, or redness or pain that increases, should be reported. Judge the result at two to three months, not at week one.

Rejuran® Healer. A course is usually three to four sessions two to four weeks apart, then maintenance every 6 to 12 months. A 2024 review describes standard practice in Korea as three to four sessions every three to four weeks. Numbing cream goes on for 20 to 30 minutes first. Afterwards there are small raised bumps and pinpoint marks, sometimes redness or bruising, which usually settle in one to three days. Avoid make-up on the day, saunas and exercise for 24 hours, and acids or retinoids for three to five days.

With either injection, sudden severe pain, a change in skin colour or any change in vision needs urgent medical attention. These are rare, but they are the reason injections are performed by a doctor.

Who each one tends to suit, and who should wait

Juvelook tends to suit people whose main concern is texture, enlarged pores or fine crepiness and who are comfortable with gradual change, while Rejuran® Healer tends to suit people whose main concern is thin, dull, finely lined or post-acne skin. Overlap is common, and a doctor's examination decides which, if either, fits.

Juvelook is commonly considered for:

• Dull or crepey skin, enlarged pores or fine texture, without much volume loss.
• People who prefer change that builds over a course.

Rejuran® Healer is commonly considered for:

• Thin, dull, finely lined or textured skin, where skin quality rather than volume is the concern.
• Post-acne skin, with the more concentrated version assessed for depressed scars.

Neither is the first choice for: a clear hollow that needs correcting now, which is assessed for hyaluronic acid filler instead, or sagging, where lifting treatments may fit more closely.

Wait, or tell the doctor first, if you:

• are pregnant or breastfeeding;
• have an active infection, cold sore or inflamed acne in the area;
• have a fish or seafood allergy (relevant to Rejuran®), or an allergy to any component;
• have an autoimmune condition, a history of keloids, take blood thinners or bruise easily;
• have an important event within a few days.

What published studies show, and their limits

Both ingredients have a growing but still limited evidence base, made up mostly of small studies, and we found no published trial that compares Juvelook with Rejuran® directly.

• PDLLA. A 2026 multicentre, randomised, evaluator-blinded split-face trial in 33 people gave a PDLLA product with hyaluronic acid on one nasolabial fold and PLLA on the other, as three injections four weeks apart. Both sides improved from baseline at every check up to week 24, and the PDLLA product was judged non-inferior to PLLA. The authors called for further, longer-term studies.
• PN and PDRN. A 2017 pharmacology review describes how PDRN acts through adenosine A2A receptors and the salvage pathway. Most of that evidence is from cell and animal studies, and the clinical studies it cites are mainly in wound healing. A 2025 review set out the PDRN and PN definitions and noted that direct clinical comparisons are limited and that many PN products do not disclose their chain length.
• Skin boosters as a group. A 2024 narrative review of injectable skin boosters, covering both PN and PDLLA, concluded that the limited number of controlled studies makes outcomes hard to predict and called for larger controlled studies with objective measures.

What this means in practice: both are reasonable options to discuss for skin quality, the published effects are modest and gradual, and results vary between people. Treat any claim that one product is clearly superior with caution, because the head-to-head evidence does not exist.

What SkinRev Lab offers, and questions to ask

SkinRev Lab offers both Juvelook and Rejuran® Healer as medical treatments performed by Dr Sin Yong, medical adviser, at CityLink Mall, and both are priced at consultation after the skin has been assessed. Dr Sin Yong may suggest one, the other, a different booster, or another approach altogether, depending on what the examination shows.

Two non-medical options are also available at the aesthetic centre, performed by Aesthetic Therapists, with prices before GST:

• Rejuran® PDRN Facial, needle-less, using cosmetic-grade PDRN: S$288 (60 minutes), S$338 (75 minutes) or S$388 (90 minutes) per session. It is a different treatment from the injection; see our Rejuran® price guide.
• Needleless SkinBooster: S$288 per region for the face or neck.

Questions worth asking at any consultation:

• What is my main concern: texture, pores, thin skin, scarring, volume or sagging?
• Which product are you proposing, and is it PDLLA, PN or PDRN?
• How will it be mixed or diluted, and how deep will it be placed?
• How many sessions, how far apart, and when should I judge the result?
• What should I do if I notice a lump, and who do I contact after hours?

For an overview of every injectable booster we offer, see skin boosters at SkinRev Lab, and if something does not feel right after a treatment, our skin booster complications guide explains what to look out for.