Reprogramming Skin and Hair: a Conversation with Dr. Òscar Expósito on a New Wave of Biotech Innovation
Dr. Òscar Expósito
CEO, CSO and co-founder of Vytrus Biotech
Vytrus launched its latest active (Toleroxyl™) recently in July 2026. What is the concept behind this innovation?
The innovation introduces a new cosmetic category: the Tolerogen, designed to help the skin’s immune system recover tolerance rather than just reduce visible signs of sensitivity.
The active is inspired by GM-CSF, a biological signal involved in the survival and functional regulation of Langerhans cells. By interacting with these immune decision-makers, Toleroxyl™ promotes a calm, tolerance-supporting state and reduces the excessive release of inflammatory signals.
Using plants as biofactories, Vytrus produces the active through a plant-based recombinant protein platform, combining biological precision with a clean, scalable and more sustainable production system.
What skin problem is Toleroxyl™ designed to address, and what have your studies shown it can do?
We built Toleroxyl™ for what we call hyperreactive skin: skin that has lost its ability to tell a harmless urban stressor from a genuine threat, largely because of chronic low-level exposure to indoor pollutants, so its Langerhans cells stay locked in a permanent state of alert. Rather than soothing that reactivity, Toleroxyl™ retrains it.
In our clinical studies on hyperreactive skin, we saw down to 65.3% reduction in visible redness after 28 days, with 90% of volunteers showing an improvement in erythema and 100% reporting improvement in functional signs like burning, itching, stinging and tightness. Toleroxyl™ also regulated in vivo cytokine: clinical reduction of pro-inflammatory markers (IL-8, TNF-α and IL-6).
Ignilyte™ takes a very different approach: bioelectricity. How does it work?
Ignilyte™ reactivates the skin's own bioelectric pathways, its natural electrical communication between cells, mimicking a mesotherapy or electrostimulation device, without the device.
In our in vivo studies, Ignilyte™ reduced crow's-feet wrinkle depth by down to 47%, decreased under-eye bag volume down to 25.9%, lifted the eye-opening angle by up to 10%, and improved skin elasticity by up to 39.8%, with results comparable to device-based treatments. It has already won Gold in the BSB Innovation Award and earned a Bronze at the FCE Innovation Award and finalist recognition at in-cosmetics Global, in-cosmetics Korea, and the Cosmetics Business Innovation Awards 2026.
You've also been exploring plant-based PDRN. What is it, and what can it do?
Vytrus’ characterization of PDRN is part of our company’s innovation-driven approach and contributes to a deeper understanding of the powerful molecular synergy behind Vytrus actives: natural plant peptides, bioactive molecules, secondary metabolites, plant growth factors, exosomes, and now PDRN as well (all of them from plant origin).
For the first time, Vytrus has systematically characterized these molecules in plant cell cultures, developing a dual-action strategy that acts both on the cell surface and within the cell nucleus, with two synergistic components:
· Phyto-PDRN: Low-molecular-weight DNA fragments that act on the cell surface by binding to A2A adenosine receptors to activate signaling pathways involved in collagen repair and synthesis.
· ExoPDRN™: The first PDRN to be identified and naturally encapsulated within genuine plant-derived exosomes. These exosomes act as delivery vehicles that deposit the PDRN directly inside the cell, activating the ‘Salvage pathway’ for genomic repair and cell survival.
Our clinical and in vitro evaluations highlight the potential of our active Centella Reversa™, which significantly increases fibroblast proliferation and stimulates collagen and elastin production to reverse cellular senescence.
Moving from skin to hair, what's new with Elaya Renova™ this year, and how does it fit into Vytrus's broader vision for hair care?
Elaya Renova™ comes from a concept we call Hair Tensegrity: healthy hair, like any well-engineered structure, must be strong enough to resist stress yet flexible enough to move naturally, with every part of it interconnected: follicle cells, anchoring proteins and the fiber itself. That's why hair care deserves the same integral, biological approach as skin.
Our published rinse-off data show that after one application Elaya Renova™ increases hair hydration by 48%, boosts strength by 15%, and reduces split ends by up to 75%.
What’s new is an ex-vivo study on curly hair: in a leave-on application, we saw up to 27% higher hydration, up to 60% easier wet combability, up to 47% less frizz in high humidity conditions, and better curl definition and retention.
Elaya Renova™ also naturally contains Phyto-PDRN, plant exosomes and ExoPDRN™ (PDRN carried inside those exosomes).
Altogether, Elaya Renova™ is a genuinely 360º: hair and scalp, leave-on and rinse-off, straight and curly hair.
Elaya Renova™ has already picked up recognition in the industry. What awards would you highlight?
It won Gold in the Innovation Zone Best Ingredient Award at in-cosmetics Latin America, took Silver in the Actives category at in-cosmetics Asia, and was a finalist in the Pure Beauty Awards.
Vytrus will be at SEPAWA Congress (Berlin, Germany) from 14 to 16 October. What can visitors expect from your presence there, and is there any other news timed around the event?
We'll be presenting our full innovation story of 2026: Toleroxyl™ - Re-educating urban skin, new data in Elaya Renova™ and Ignilyte™ - Bioelectric power for your skin, to the German and wider European market. We'll also join for the first time the stand of our new German distributor (IMCD), which will bring our actives closer to formulators in one of our key markets.
Sustainability keeps showing up in your story. You recently earned the EcoVadis Gold Medal, placing Vytrus in the top tier worldwide. What does that recognition reflect?
We scored 83/100, which places us in the top 3% of all companies EcoVadis evaluates worldwide. It reflects work across four areas: environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement, and builds on a roadmap followed since our first EcoVadis recognition in 2020: alignment with the UN Global Compact, clear water and CO2 reduction targets, and partnerships with social and research organizations. This milestone is framed within our Sustainability Strategy which will bring new advances in the coming months.
Looking ahead, what's next for Vytrus Biotech?
The pipeline keeps growing: stem cell cultures, recombinant proteins, and our work on plant-based PDRN and exosomes is opening a new front in regeneration. We're also expanding our commercial reach in Europe, starting with our new partnership with IMCD in Germany and our direct commercialization model in Austria and Switzerland.
We'll bring more new actives to market next year as we keep growing. The throughline is the same: cutting-edge plant biotechnology that is sustainable and impactful for our customers, aligned with today’s consumers’ demands.
WEBSITE URL:
https://www.vytrus.com/
EMAIL ADDRESS:
info@vytrus.com
