ExoLab Italia is an innovative startup and benefit company founded on the 30-year research work done at the Department of Oncology and Molecular Medicine of the Istituto Superiore della Sanità by Professor Stefano Fais and Dr. Mariantonia Logozzi.
The company brings innovation to the market in the fields of drug delivery systems, food supplementation and cosmetics thanks to its 100% plant-based technology platform based on plant-derived exosomes extracted from Italian organic fruits and vegetables. Exosomes are used as a cell-cell communication system, capable of interconnecting cells with each other. What sets them apart is their ability to associate different species with each other ('inter-kingdom connection'). Their peculiarity is that they transport a range of bioactives, including proteins, lipids, dna, rna, and mrna, enabling them to deliver phytonutrients such as antioxidants.
They are 'messengers' capable of transporting essential substances through the human body, releasing them at sites that are generally difficult to reach and thus facilitating intercellular cross talk. In short, plant exosomes can enhance the efficacy of drug delivery.
The technological platform developed by Exolab Italia was initially conceived for development in the pharmaceutical field as a drug delivery system for drugs and molecules, but, thanks to its features and ease of application, in order to minimise the company's time to market, the start-up has developed an innovative raw material to create unique, high-performance products in the field of food supplementation and cosmetics.
The company already has several ongoing projects under its belt. In the pharmaceutical field, Dompè Farmaceutici has entrusted ExoLab Italia with a research project that will make it possible to exploit biological exosomes as drug delivery systems for skin diseases.  In the nutraceutical field, on the other hand, three products have been launched on the market in collaboration with Guna, relating to anti-ageing, fertility and rest.