Deliveroo backer joins $4M seed round for tooth enamel startup Eterna
What's the deal? Eterna RegenerativesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a London startup regenerating human tooth enamel, has raised a £3 million ($4 million) seed round. Hoxton Ventures — an early backer of Deliveroo and Darktrace — jointly led the round, with The Venture CollectiveDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → also participating.
What's the endgame? A 2024 spinout from King's College London, Eterna is building a regenerative biomaterials platform. It uses patented material, made from keratin found in sheep's wool and human hair, that it says can regrow damaged tooth enamel.
Why now? The company is first targeting the $43 billion global oral care market amid rising tooth decay in adult populations. Its keratin material can be added to toothpaste, which Eterna says offers enduring enamel regeneration rather than the temporary strengthening from fluoride.
The money will speed Eterna's move from lab proof of concept to market. "We could be in the market as early as the end of the year," said co-founder Sherif Elsharkawy.
What could go wrong? Eterna's route to market depends on unproven claims. Its keratin technology remains at an early stage, and bone regeneration — a broader use case — rests on preliminary tests only.
The signal: Investors are betting on regenerative biomaterials that repair rather than manage damage. "Eterna is the kind of company we like to back early: powerful, defensible science with a capital-efficient route to market," said Hussein Kanji, partner at Hoxton Ventures, pointing to potential uses in tissue and bone regeneration.
Read more: uk.finance.yahoo.com
Image credit: wwarby
