Core Biogenesis
Entrepreneur First '20Paris, FR · Founded 2020 · 31 employees on LinkedIn · 7 known investors
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Core Biogenesis is a French biotech that uses an oleosome fusion platform to grow active peptides and proteins (such as EGF and FGF-2) inside camelina seeds, producing formulation-ready topical delivery carriers for skin and scalp. It supplies these recombinant protein actives to the cosmetics and personal care industry, serving formulators, R&D teams, and brands.
Also known as Core Biogenesis SAS
Founders & leadership
Core Biogenesis was founded in 2020 by Alexandre Reeber and Chouaib Meziadi.
Investors · 7
Also in the syndicate · 4
Funding
SEC filings, press & company announcements- Undisclosed amountseries AAug 2022
XAnge (lead), Blue Horizon Ventures, Thia Ventures
Source ↗ - Undisclosed amountSeries AJul 2022Source ↗
Source: company announcements and press reports — follow each round's link for the claim.
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Core Biogenesis is a French biotechnology company operating a plant-based bioproduction platform that expresses recombinant proteins in the seeds of the Camelina sativa oilseed plant. The company describes the platform as having two engines: bioproduction, in which a target protein is genetically fused to oleosin and expressed displayed on the surface of the seed's oleosomes (lipid droplets), without fermenters or animal cells; and delivery, in which the same oleosome acts as the carrier that transports the protein onto skin and scalp. The company states the resulting actives are room-temperature stable with a 12-month ambient shelf life and can be incorporated into standard cosmetic formulations. It reports having expressed 15+ proteins across functional classes including growth factors (EGF, FGF, KGF), antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase), antimicrobials (lactoferrin, defensins), biomimetic peptides, structural proteins and endolysin enzymes targeting C. acnes and S. aureus.
The commercial portfolio consists of three launched actives — peauvita (EGF-oleosome fusion, for epidermal renewal), peauforia (FGF-2-oleosome fusion, for dermal renewal) and peaureva (FGF-2-oleosome fusion for hair and follicle applications) — with six further programs in development, including lactoferrin (described as clinical and partnered), superoxide dismutase, KGF, IGF-1, albumin and endolysin enzymes. The company reports four clinical studies conducted by ISO-certified CROs under dermatologist supervision, including a head-to-head comparison against 0.3% retinol published in SOFW Journal in November 2025.
At its 2022 Series A the company's stated first market was cell therapy manufacturing and cellular agriculture, supplying animal-free growth factors and cytokines as cell-culture media components; a third-party profile indicates the company later extended into cosmetic actives from September 2024 while continuing to supply approximately thirty confidential clients including large pharmaceutical companies and cultivated protein manufacturers.
Founding story
Core Biogenesis was founded in May 2020 in Paris by Alexandre Reeber (CEO) and Dr. Chouaib Meziadi (CSO), around a proprietary method of expressing recombinant proteins in Camelina sativa seeds. The founders positioned the platform as a way to produce highly bioactive compounds without animal or antibiotic inputs while lowering cost and biosafety risk relative to mammalian and microbial systems. The company was part of Entrepreneurs First's portfolio.
Business model
Business-to-business supply of recombinant protein actives and ingredients. The company sells formulator-ready oleosome-fused actives to cosmetics and personal care companies and, per its Series A communications and a third-party profile, growth factors and cytokines used as cell-culture media inputs by biopharma, cell therapy and cultivated-protein customers. Development-stage programs include at least one partnered asset (lactoferrin).
Revenue is generated from sales of produced protein ingredients to industrial customers; a third-party profile reports revenue of $6.3M and roughly thirty client accounts, but the company does not publish pricing or contract structures in the sources reviewed.
Traction
Three commercially available actives and six pipeline programs; 15+ proteins expressed to date; four clinical studies reported; approximately thirty client accounts and $6.3M revenue per a third-party profile; 20+ employees across Paris and Strasbourg (30 targeted at the time of the 2022 Series A); $13.5M raised across two rounds per a third-party profile.
Latest developments
Publication of a head-to-head clinical comparison of 1% Peauvita plus 1% Peauforia against 0.3% retinol, run by AbiCh Lifeanalytics and published in SOFW Journal in November 2025; launch of peaureva for hair and scalp; recognition as 2025 winner of the L'Oreal Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Challenge and receipt of the C&T Alle Award 2026 and an EcoVadis Platinum 2026 rating; a partnered lactoferrin program reported to be at clinical stage.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history, risks & controversies
Market position
Positioned as a supplier of plant-made recombinant protein actives, competing with traditional mammalian and microbial expression-based growth factor suppliers; a third-party profile names ORF Genetics as a comparable plant-based producer and cites scalability as Core Biogenesis' claimed advantage. Recognition cited by the company includes the 2021 i-Lab BPI France Grand Prize, the 2025 L'Oreal Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Challenge, the C&T Alle Award 2026 and an EcoVadis Platinum 2026 rating.
The company frames its differentiation as a single platform that both manufactures and delivers the active: the oleosome used for surface-display expression is also the topical carrier, which it links to ambient stability (12-month shelf life) and skin/scalp penetration. Additional stated differentiators are the absence of fermentation infrastructure and animal-derived inputs, high purity via a short downstream process, claimed carbon-negative production, and clinical validation of each launched active in placebo-controlled or head-to-head trials.
Technology
Molecular farming in Camelina sativa. Target proteins are fused to oleosin so that they are expressed and displayed on the surface of seed oleosomes, avoiding fermentation infrastructure and animal-derived components. Downstream processing was described at Series A as a three-step operation delivering high purity, with the company claiming elimination of endotoxin, virus and prion contamination risks associated with mammalian and microbial expression systems, and a patent-pending expression platform. The oleosome doubles as the topical delivery vehicle, with the active anchored to a native lipid droplet described as biomimetic to the skin barrier. Products are certified or described as COSMOS-approved, vegan-suitable, cruelty-free, non-GMO (iGen certification) and endotoxin-free.
Go-to-market
Direct B2B ingredient sales supported by a technical content library on growth factors, oleosomes, formulation and clinical evidence, sample and formulation-data requests through the website, published clinical study results (including in SOFW Journal), and visibility from industry awards and competitions such as the L'Oreal Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Challenge.
Cosmetics and personal care formulators, R&D teams and brand leaders evaluating topical actives; and, per Series A-era materials and third-party reporting, cell therapy and biopharma manufacturers, stem cell and regenerative medicine researchers, and cultivated meat/cellular agriculture producers.
Geography
Headquartered in Paris, France, with operations in Strasbourg (a large-scale recombinant protein production facility announced for Q1 2023) and, per a third-party profile, in Illkirch-Graffenstaden. The team of 20+ is distributed across Paris and Strasbourg. Investors are based in Paris, Zurich, Geneva, Luxembourg, Belgium and Singapore.
History
Founded May 2020; raised a EUR 2.6M seed round in December 2020 from XAnge, Entrepreneur First, Plug and Play and business angels; won the national i-Lab BPI France Grand Prize in 2021; closed a $10.5M Series A (EUR 10M, completed March 2022 and announced July 2022) led by XAnge with Blue Horizon Ventures, Thia Ventures and Entrepreneur First, used to build an industrial-scale Strasbourg facility for GMP-grade growth factors and cytokines targeted to be operational in Q1 2023 and to grow headcount toward 30. In September 2024 the company extended into cosmetics with the Peauvita (EGF) and Peauforia (FGF-2) actives, later adding the peaureva hair product, and published head-to-head clinical data in November 2025.
Risks & controversies
Source data is inconsistent: one aggregator reports total funding of $13.5M across two rounds while the same page elsewhere cites $26.7M in total funding, states employee bands of both 1001-5000 and 11-50, and says founders are not detailed despite naming them, indicating unreliable third-party data. The 2022 press release describes the Series A as both $10.5M and EUR 10M closed in March 2022 versus a July 2022 announcement. Efficacy, sustainability and purity claims (including carbon-negative production and clinical percentages) originate from company communications or company-commissioned CRO studies. The business has also shifted its primary stated market from cell therapy and cultivated meat inputs toward cosmetic actives, and no funding after 2022 is documented in the sources.
Compiled by commissioned research from 5 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 9
launches, deals, and filingsAwarded EcoVadis Platinum, described as the top 1% of companies worldwide for sustainability.
A head-to-head trial of 1% Peauvita plus 1% Peauforia versus 0.3% retinol, conducted by CRO AbiCh Lifeanalytics, was published in SOFW Journal; reported day-30 results included -25.5% wrinkle depth and -27.2% wrinkle length.
Expanded from biopharma into cosmetics with skincare actives Peauforia FGF-2 and Peauvita EGF.
Announced that a large-scale production facility in Strasbourg for GMP-grade growth factors and cytokines would be fully functional in Q1 2023, with capacity measured in kilograms.
Completed a $10.5M Series A (described elsewhere in the release as a EUR 10M round closed in March 2022) led by XAnge, with Blue Horizon Ventures, Thia Ventures, Entrepreneur First and business angels. Proceeds earmarked for an industrial-scale production facility for growth factors and cytokines and for scientific/technical hiring.
$10.5M source ↗
Named Grand Prize winner of the national i-Lab BPI France competition.
Raised EUR 2.6 million in seed funding from XAnge, Entrepreneur First, Plug and Play and several business angels; a third-party profile states the seed round as $3,160,000.
$3.2M source ↗
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
In the news
▸Research sources · 5
primary sources listed
- Core Biogenesiscorebiogenesis.com · web
5 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Core Biogenesis do?
- French biotech producing recombinant protein actives in camelina seed oleosomes for skincare, haircare and cell-culture markets.
- Who founded Core Biogenesis?
- Core Biogenesis was founded by Alexandre Reeber, Chouaib Meziadi in 2020.
- Who are Core Biogenesis's investors?
- Core Biogenesis's investors include Blue Horizon Corporation, Entrepreneur First, XAnge.
- Where is Core Biogenesis headquartered?
- Core Biogenesis is headquartered in Paris, FR.