Joining the Healthy Tattoo Consortium

We are excited to announce that the Lab has become an associate member of the Healthy Tattoo Consortium (HTC), an innovative initiative led by UMCG Research. The HTC is dedicated to advancing scientific understanding of tattoo safety, filling critical knowledge gaps, and shaping clinical guidelines to ensure that every tattoo decision is informed by science rather than guesswork.

Why This Matters

Tattoos are increasingly popular, yet there are still significant gaps in our understanding of their long-term health impacts. By joining the HTC, our lab will contribute to and benefit from:

• Cutting-edge research on tattoo safety, ink composition, and potential health risks.
• Collaborative opportunities with experts in dermatology, toxicology, and public health.
• Access to evidence-based guidelines that will help inform both the public and professionals in the tattoo industry.

Our Role in the Consortium

As an associate member, our lab will focus on investigating the immunological aspects of tattooing, particularly how tattoo inks interact with the immune system. Our expertise in B cell biology and germinal center dynamics will be instrumental in exploring how the body responds to tattoo inks at a cellular level. We aim to contribute to studies that assess the potential for allergic reactions, chronic inflammation, and other immune-related responses associated with tattoo inks. By understanding these mechanisms, we hope to inform safer tattoo practices and ink formulations.

What’s Next?

We look forward to integrating our research expertise into the HTC’s mission and exploring how our work can support safer tattoo practices. Stay tuned for updates on our contributions and findings as we collaborate with this dynamic consortium. A special thanks to the HTC team for welcoming us.

For more information about the Healthy Tattoo Consortium, visit their website: umcgresearch.org/htc.