Genoskin raises $8.7M to advance immunocompetent human skin models

16 September 2025

Franco-American CRO Genoskin announces it has raised $8.7M in its first funding round led by OCCTE (FPCI Occidev Impacts) to grow its human ex vivo skin platform.

In a field that struggles to bridge the gap between preclinical promise and clinical outcome, the project carried by Genoskin has a particular significance. The development of vaccines and therapies for human skin diseases is fraught with difficulties, not least of which is the existence of numerous inter-species differences in skin anatomy, physiology and immunity.

To address this challenge, Toulouse-based Genoskin develops and supplies immunocompetent ex vivo skin models that enable more predictive, human-relevant testing than traditional animal or engineered models. By employing AI-powered multi-omics analyses, Genoskin supports global pharma, biotech and cosmetics companies with meaningful insights into mechanisms of human skin pathologies, reliable safety and efficacy assessments, and accelerated regulatory acceptance.

A notable example is the company's partnership with Catalyst Biosciences to mitigate pain and redness observed at injection site of DalcA treatment in patients with Hemophilia B. Genoskin's ISR platform® was the first human skin ex vivo platform to study injection site reactions to vaccines and drug candidates. By leveraging Genoskin's HypoSkin® ex vivo model and expertise in immunotoxicity assays,  Catalyst Biosciences was able to identify a new formulation buffer for DalcA with a lower risk of injection site reactions.

“As a company built on ethical innovation, we are proud to offer sustainable, human-relevant alternatives to animal testing. This investment validates our strategy and reinforces our position as a leader in predictive immunotoxicology using live human skin models,” said Pascal Descargues, Ph.D., CEO of Genoskin.  

This first round of funding will further support the company's launching of new immune-centric services, scaling up of operations through automation, increase in production capacity, and expansion of commercial presence in key global markets.