Plinest or PolyPhil? The comparison – and the matter with Mastelli

In short: If you're looking for Plinest in Switzerland and can't find it, it's not your fault. Mastelli, the Italian manufacturer of Plinest, simply doesn't sell directly here. What is available is PolyPhil — and the manufacturer listed on its packaging is Mastelli. So, both product lines grow from the same root: PN-HPT® technology from Sanremo. They may have different names and different compositions, but they still come from the same company. Further down, we'll compare the formulas specifically.

At alestetics® at Zurich HB: We chose PolyPhil™. PolyPhil™ costs CHF 500 per ampoule here, the 3-session plan CHF 1’200. First, we measure your skin in the free AURA 3D skin analysis.

Book your free skin analysis →

It happens more often than you think: A client sits with us and says "I want Plinest." She knows it from Russia or from abroad, where polynucleotides are known by exactly that name. And then comes the surprise – you can hardly find Plinest in Switzerland. That causes uncertainty. So we clarify things calmly, with the actual figures.

Why there are hardly any plinest in Switzerland

Whether a medical device is offered in a particular country has less to do with its quality and more with distribution channels and approvals. Mastelli strongly markets Plinest in many regions — in Italy, the rest of Europe, and Russia. This direct route is currently not available for Switzerland.

And that doesn't mean that there aren't any polynucleotides from Mastelli here. It just means that they go by a different name here.

A brief word on Mastelli — because the story is truly wonderful

Mastelli was founded in Sanremo, Italy, in 1952, and the company is at the forefront of the entire polynucleotide concept. The roots lie in wound healing: it was recognised early on that purified DNA fragments promote tissue regeneration. This decades-long work led to the PN-HPT® purification technology, which allows for the particularly pure extraction of polynucleotides – with as few proteins as possible, which could trigger reactions.

In short: If "salmon DNA" and skin regeneration are being discussed worldwide today, a large part of the trail leads back to Sanremo. Mastelli is the pioneer, and a large part of the scientific foundation stems from this work. You can find the whole range on the Mastelli Aesthetic Medicine Page.

And where does PolyPhil come in?

PolyPhil is part of the product range of the Austrian company Croma-Pharma (their line is called PhilArt). Croma is a well-known brand in minimally invasive aesthetics, present in over 70 countries. So far, so familiar.

The beauty comes when you turn the box over. The PolyPhil packaging itself states Mastelli in Sanremo as the manufacturer – this isn't a marketing claim, you can read it there black and white. And Croma confirms in its own documentation that the manufacturing is based on PN-HPT® technology. Exactly the technology that Mastelli developed.

So that settles it: PolyPhil and Plinest are distinct products with their own formulations and names — but they come from the same company and are based on the same technology. Anyone who buys PolyPhil in Switzerland is getting polynucleotides from the pioneer’s laboratory. Not a substitute, not an imitation, but the same origin under a different label.

I am deliberately not saying that Plinest and PolyPhil are identical – that would be quite wrong. The formulations differ. That is precisely why a specific look is worthwhile.

The concrete comparison: same idea, built in parallel

What stands out when you place both series side-by-side: they are almost mirror images of each other in their construction. For every Plinest product, there is a PolyPhil counterpart with the same function. Here are the formulas, as concrete as possible:

Task	Plinest-Range (Mastelli)	PolyPhil-Range (Croma-Pharma)
Pure polynucleotides, face	Plinest — Purified polynucleotides (PN-HPT®), 2 ml pre-filled syringe	PolyPhil — Long-chain polynucleotides 20 mg/ml, 2 ml pre-filled syringe
Polynucleotides + Hyaluronic acid	Newest — Polynucleotides + hyaluronic acid + mannitol	PolyPhil Next — Polynucleotides + Hyaluronic acid
For the eye area	Plinest Eye	PolyPhil Eye
Large areas / Body	Plinest One (Solution, ampoules)	about PolyPhil possible
Pure hyaluronic acid	iALEST	—

A few things are worth explaining because they are often confused:

The pure polynucleotide is the core of both ranges. Plinest and PolyPhil contain polynucleotides without hyaluronic acid – their job is cell regeneration, not instant hydration. PolyPhil is specified at 20 mg/ml; Plinest is of a comparable order of magnitude. Both are administered intradermally via a 2-ml pre-filled syringe.

The variant with hyaluronic acid means at Mastelli Newest, at Croma PolyPhil Next. This is combined with the polynucleotide hyaluronic acid – regeneration plus immediate moisture in one step. Newest additionally contains mannitol, an antioxidant. This variant is more intended for mature or dehydrated skin.

The eye formula exists in both lines as a gentler version — Plinest Eye and PolyPhil Eye — made for thin eyelid skin. Read more in Polynucleotides under the eyes.

One last common mix-up: iALEST from Mastelli is not a polynucleotide, but pure hyaluronic acid. Anyone asking for "the Mastelli product with hyaluronic acid" almost always means Newest — not iALEST.

Crucially, across all variants: none of these products are fillers. They are skin boosters that stimulate the skin to regenerate — they do not create artificial volume. How this fundamentally relates to hyaluronic acid, you can read about in Polynucleotides or hyaluron, and you'll find the entire brand landscape in the Brand comparison.

Which means for your treatment in Zurich

If you've been fixated on the name Plinest until now, you can rest assured: With PolyPhil, you get polynucleotides in Zurich with precisely this PN-HPT® origin, regularly available in Switzerland. It's not about replacing a name, but about choosing the right formula for your skin — pure polynucleotide, the variant with hyaluronic acid, or the eye variant.

At the alestetics® clinic right by Zurich HB, we apply PolyPhil™ with the Vital Injector 2™ — without wheals or bumps. Together we check which formula fits your skin during our free AURA 3D skin analysis.

Read on

• Plinest, PolyPhil, Rejuran, Nucleofill in comparison
• PolyPhil vs. PolyPhil Next: which variant for which skin?
• Polynucleotides or hyaluronic acid: which is better for skin quality?

Is Plinest available in Switzerland?

Mastelli, the manufacturer of Plinest, does not currently sell directly in Switzerland. However, Mastelli's polynucleotides are available here as PolyPhil from Croma – whose packaging indicates Mastelli as the manufacturer.

Is PolyPhil the same as Plinest?

No, they are standalone products with different formulations. What they have in common is their origin: both are based on PN-HPT® technology and are manufactured at Mastelli. PolyPhil is distributed through the Austrian company Croma-Pharma.

What is the difference between Newest and PolyPhil Next?

Both combine polynucleotides with hyaluronic acid — Newest belongs to the Mastelli range (with added mannitol as an antioxidant), PolyPhil Next to the Croma range. The idea is the same: regeneration plus moisture.

What is the concentration of PolyPhil?

PolyPhil contains long-chain polynucleotides at a concentration of 20 mg/ml, in a 2 ml pre-filled syringe. Plinest is in a comparable range.

Does PolyPhil contain hyaluronic acid?

The pure PolyPhil contains only polynucleotides. The PolyPhil Next variant combines polynucleotides with hyaluronic acid as well — comparable to Newest from the Mastelli range.