the production of several types of chinese soup dumplings, specifically shanghainese soup dumplings, or xiaolongbao, as well as shengjian mantou, a type of fried and steamed dumpling. the fillings of both are made by combining ground pork with gelatin cubes, and in the process of cooking, the gelatin melts, creating a soupy interior with a characteristic gelatinous stickiness. gelatin is used for the clarification of juices, such as apple juice, and of vinegar. isinglass is obtained from the swim bladders of fish. it is used as a fining agent for wine and beer. besides hartshorn jelly, from deer antlers (hence the name "hartshorn"), isinglass was one of the oldest sources of gelatin. cosmetics in cosmetics, hydrolyzed collagen may be found in topical creams, acting as a product texture conditioner, and moisturizer. collagen implants or dermal fillers are also used to address the appearance of wrinkles, contour deficiencies, and acne scars, among others. the u.s. food and drug administration has approved its use, and identifies cow (bovine) and human cells as the sources of these fillers. according to the fda, the desired effects can last for 3–4 months, which is relatively the most short-lived compared to other materials used for the same purpose. other technical uses capsules made of gelatin certain professional and theatrical lighting equipment use color gels to change the beam color. historically, these were made with gelatin, hence the term, color gel. originally, gelatin constituted the shells of all drug and vitamin capsules to make them easier to swallow. now, a vegetarian-acceptable alternative to gelatin, hypromellose, is also used, and is less expensive than gelatin to produce. some animal glues such as hide glue may be unrefined gelatin. it is used to hold silver halide crystals in an emulsion in virtually all photographic films and photographic papers. despite significant effort, no suitable substitutes with the stability and low cost of gelatin have been found. used as a carrier, coating, or separating agent for other substances, for example, it makes β-carotene water-soluble, thus imparting a yellow color to any soft drinks containing β-carotene. ballistic gelatin is used to test and measure the performance of bullets shot from firearms. gelatin is used as a binder in match heads and sandpaper. cosmetics may contain a non-gelling variant of gelatin under the name hydrolyzed collagen (hydrolysate). gelatin was first used as an external surface sizing for paper in 1337 and continued as a dominant sizing agent of all european papers through the mid-nineteenth century. in modern times, it is mostly found in watercolor paper, and occasionally in glossy printing papers, artistic papers, and playing cards. it maintains the wrinkles in crêpe paper. biotechnology: gelatin is also used in synthesizing hydrogels for tissue engineering applications. gelatin is also used as a saturating agent in immunoassays, and as a coat. gelatin degradation assay allows visualizing and quantifying invasion at the subcellular level instead of analyzing the invasive behavior of whole cells, for the study of cellular protrusions called invadopodia and podosomes, which are protrusive structures in cancer cells and play an important role in cell attachment and remodeling of the extracellular matrix (ecm). religious considerations the consumption of gelatin from particular animals may be forbidden by religious rules or cultural taboos. islamic halal and jewish kosher customs generally require gelatin from sources other than pigs, such as cattle that have been slaughtered according to religious regulations (halal or kosher), or fish (that jews and muslims are allowed to consume). on the other hand, some islamic jurists have argued that the chemical treatment "purifies" the gelatin enough to always be halal, an argument most common in the field of medicine. it has similarly been argued that gelatin in medicine is permissible in judaism, as it is not used as food. according to the jewish dietary laws, the book of kosher guidelines published by the rabbinical assembly, the organization of conservative jewish rabbis, all gelatin is kosher and pareve because the chemical transformation undergone in the manufacturing process renders it a different physical and chemical substance. sikh, hindu, and jain customs may require gelatin alternatives from sources other than animals, as many hindus, most jains and some sikhs are vegetarian.