Hoxton Ventures backs human hair toothpaste pioneer in $4M round

Hoxton
Ventures is backing a UK startup which hopes to commercialise a protein sourced
from human hair or sheep’s wool into a toothpaste to protect against tooth
decay. The
London-based early-stage VC, which has backed Darktrace and GoCardless, is
co-leading a $4m seed round in Eterna Regeneratives, according to well-placed
sources. The other
co-lead is The Venture Collective.

A spinout
from King’s College London, Eterna, which was founded in 2024, is building
a biomaterials regeneration platform, with an initial focus on enamel and bone
repair.
It is
pioneering a process in which keratin, a protein sourced from human hair or
sheep’s wool, can repair damaged tooth enamel.

The
startup’s research shows that keratin can generate a thick mineral coating
that copies natural enamel when applied to a tooth’s surface and mixed with
saliva minerals.

Tooth decay
impacts nearly 90 per cent of adults between 20 and 64 and around 46 per cent
of children, figures show.

The
founders of Eterna believe the process could be formulated into a toothpaste or
an applied gel for enamel repair. They say it can better protect against decay than fluoride.

Hussein Kanji, co-founder, Hoxton Ventures, said: “Regrowing teeth and bones. Once again proving that the UK can out-innovate the world!”

Image: Pixabay