Centenara Labs

Centenara (formerly Rejuveron, rebranded in 2024) runs a hub-and-portfolio model out of Schlieren, Switzerland, that spreads bets across multiple aging hallmarks at once — founding or investing in a set of early-stage therapeutics companies each targeting a distinct mechanism, from senescent-cell clearance to telomere biology to vascular and ocular aging. Co-founded in 2019 by scientist-entrepreneur Matthias Steger and investor Christian Angermayer and led by CEO Aksana Labokha, the company has translated that structure into real clinical progress: portfolio company Endogena Therapeutics dosed its first patient in a Phase 1/2a trial of a small-molecule endogenous-stem-cell regenerator for retinitis pigmentosa, and Rejuvenate Biomed advanced a combination therapy for sarcopenia into human trials — two independent programs reaching the clinic, which is more than most geroscience players can claim. The September 2023 $75M dual-tranche Series B and convertible-loan financing (co-led by Catalio and Apeiron, with Mubadala Capital backing) deliberately built a Middle East presence, tapping sovereign capital pools increasingly eager to fund longevity. Diversifying across modalities, hallmarks, and development stages inside one vehicle gives Centenara multiple maturing assets and a structurally distinctive way to convert geroscience into clinical value.

The portfolio model spreads risk but also spreads capital thin, and Centenara's most advanced assets are in early clinical stages against diseases where clean proof-of-concept is hard to come by — regenerating retinal function in retinitis pigmentosa and reversing sarcopenia are both indications littered with prior failures, and a Phase 1/2a dosing milestone is a long way from efficacy. The $75M Series B dates to September 2023, and a multi-company structure consuming parallel R&D budgets burns quickly; in a difficult European biotech funding climate, the company will need substantial fresh capital to carry several programs through mid-stage trials, and its dependence on Middle Eastern sovereign backing ties its fortunes to a small set of strategic investors. The 2024 rebrand from Rejuveron to Centenara adds narrative discontinuity and can obscure track record. Like all hallmark-of-aging portfolios, it faces the FDA's non-recognition of aging as an indication, forcing each affiliate into conventional disease approvals where it competes against focused specialists with deeper resources. And the shared connection to Angermayer's broader longevity network means Centenara's perception rises and falls partly with a wider ecosystem whose commercial results remain unproven.