Cyterra engineers enzymes to synthesize nature-identical and new-to-nature ingredients from abundant terpenes.
FASTER
Rapid development cycles
<6 months to gram-scale production
CUSTOMIZED
Natural Ingredients
Exclusivity by Design
SCALABLE
Processes
Selective and cost-efficient
Unlock the dark terpenome with us
Our platform goes beyond reproducing known natural terpenes. It allows us to explore new molecular space, uncovering xenoterpenes: terpene-inspired molecules that do not yet exist in nature, but may hold entirely new sensory, functional, and performance properties.
We believe this unexplored chemical universe contains the next generation of fragrance, flavor, cosmetic, agricultural, and pharmaceutical ingredients.
Exploring the
Chemical Universe
Unlock the next generation of terpenes
Chemistry-Driven Enzyme
Design
We design enzymes
from first principles
Beyond Traditional Fermentation
Our cells generate the catalyst, not the product
From Concept to Product
Cyterra has its roots in the world-renowned lab of Prof. Bernhard Hauer, where our founding scientists helped demonstrate the enzymatic synthesis and transformation of dozens of terpene molecules. Building on this deep expertise in cyclases, hydratases and related enzyme classes, Cyterra translates academic breakthroughs into programmable terpene chemistry for industry — enabling faster, cleaner and more predictable access to both known natural products and new-to-nature terpenes.
Collaborating with Industry Leaders
Together with IFF, Cyterra is developing biocatalytic routes to terpene-based fragrance ingredients. Our collaboration connects enzyme design, reaction engineering, sample generation, and perfumer feedback in fast innovation cycles.
