UK startup Eterna Regeneratives has closed a seed investment round led by Hoxton Ventures and The Venture Collective (TVC) to build its regenerative biomaterial platform spanning enamel repair and bone regeneration, starting with the $43bn global oral care market. Co-founded by Khaled Eissa and Dr Sherif Elsharkawy in 2024, the King's College London spin-out attracted international attention last year when studies found the team's revolutionary patented material could successfully regrow damaged tooth enamel using keratin - a protein found in human hair, skin and wool. The research developed by Dr Elsharkawy and Dr Sara Gamea, his PhD student, was picked up widely by national and international media, including from the BBC, Washington Post and Newsweek, putting keratin-based regeneration on the map well before a commercial product existed.

Now working to develop a pipeline of material technologies, Eterna aims to tackle a problem that affects nearly everyone: the slow, irreversible loss of tooth enamel. The team at Eterna Regeneratives believes that symptom management cannot be the only solution. "The only way to truly heal the human body is to help it heal itself," said Khaled Eissa, co-founder and CEO. "We wanted to create a product that is readily available, scalable and has the potential to deliver long-term results." "This investment lets us move from lab-based proof of concept to real-world products at pace," said Dr Sherif Elsharkawy, Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder. "It is a validation of years of research, and a step change in how quickly we can bring this technology to patients."

Unlike many other tissues in the human body, tooth enamel cannot naturally regenerate once it has been lost. This can lead to hypersensitivity, cavities, tooth pain and the gradual deterioration of teeth. Fluoride, the best option currently available on the market, only superficially addresses the problem – offering minor strengthening of existing enamel but failing to rebuild what has already been lost. Resin, the go-to for professional repair, merely fills a tooth rather than rebuilding it, and has a finite lifespan, often resulting in necessary replacements and high costs for patients. It is against this backdrop that Eterna has created a keratin-based material that can be added to toothpaste, enabling cost-effective and lasting enamel regeneration.

Eterna's patented keratin-based product has delivered striking results. In vitro experiments carried out on extracted tooth samples revealed a new, enamel-like layer forming directly on the tooth surface, as the material stimulates a mineralisation process. Treated samples showed hardness and mechanical strength restored to levels close to that of native, healthy enamel. Moreover, the technology has shown the capacity to reduce abrasion and even treat decay. This provides a first glimpse into what it might look like to help a tooth heal itself, instead of simply patching over damage. It is also significantly cheaper than alternatives, delivering meaningful treatment at a fraction of the cost.