Concerto Biosciences Completes Data Collection for Massive Skin Microbiome Interaction Project
Key Takeaways
Concerto Biosciences collected 33+ million microbial interaction data points in just five months using its proprietary kChip platform.
The Skin Universe Project (SUP) explores how microbial secretions interact to suppress or support key dermatologic pathogens, according to Concerto.
Concerto Biosciences announced today that it has concluded the data acquisition phase of the Skin Universe Project (SUP), collecting over 33 million empirical data points in what it calls the largest known dataset of skin microbial interactions.
Researchers at the company generated microbial secretion pairings from hundreds of skin-associated strains and evaluated their effects on condition-linked microbes such as Staphylococcus aureus, Cutibacterium acnes, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Using data generated from Concerto’s kChip microwell platform, the manufacturer said they are already informing both therapeutic and skincare development.
“Scientists have long known that microbes can behave like flowers or like weeds,” said Jared Kehe, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and cofounder, in a press release. “But we haven’t had the tools to shape the garden...SUP provides foundational understanding of who influences whom in the skin microbiome so we can rigorously design interventions.”
According to Concerto, SUP evaluates active interactions, which differentiates it from sequencing-based microbiome studies. With kChip capable of testing over 1.4 million interactions daily, Concerto said the project captures complex microbial behaviors at an unprecedented scale.
“The Skin Universe Project positions Concerto to build a robust pipeline of live biotherapeutics and natural skin solutions,” said CEO and cofounder Cheri Ackerman, PhD, in the release. "We look forward to collaborating with microbiologists across the industry to transform this critical data resource into science-driven personal care products and therapeutic interventions."
Source: Concerto Biosciences press release. May 21, 2025.