FAQ

We feed your skin biome targeted prebiotics (think “food”) to produce long-chain ceramides right there on your skin. Our proprietary microbiome and biochemistry platform develop our products. These compounds made on your skin by you are the most natural as they are bioidentical. Your own body makes the ingredients! They also last incredibly long and require very, very low doses of the prebiotics to work. The compounds are also vegan! In our products here, your skin biome makes long-chain ceramides. You won’t find native ceramides like this in any other products. They are made by your skin biome!

The majority of skincare brands don’t know much about skin, the microbiome-- they go to a formulator and manufacturer and say, “we want a ‘clean’ skincare moisturizer” or “we want an anti-acne product that’s natural.” The formulator comes up with a product in the brand’s price range and meets the particular claims the brand wants to make, and the brand tries it (meaning ‘feels like it’s ok’)-- then the manufacturer mixes, bottles, and perhaps (fulfills) for the brand. The formulator may have ingredients they are pushing that is new or exciting in their eyes. You, as the customer, are paying for that bottle and the marketing to reach out to you.

We are the new frontier of skincare: beyond natural and clean-- the compounds are native! Our targeted prebiotic ingredients get your own body to make the active ingredients right on your skin. We do the R&D and formulations and create them for you. We develop and own all our technology.

We want you to be in the loop. We want to know what’s troubling you! We are here to help and improve your health! Join our Triangle community to be as close as possible to the source!

Ceramides make up about 80% of what’s known as your skin barrier. The skin barrier is a protective layer on the top of your skin made up of lipids (fats) like ceramides, skin cells, and microorganisms. Ceramides are included in many skincare products, especially sensitive skincare. The skin barrier protects your skin from moisture loss and disease.
Keeping ceramides in the skin barrier is essential. A decrease in ceramides naturally occurs after the age of 20, and decreases in the skin barrier are a precursor to skin disease.

Ceramides are a CLASS of compounds; this means there are a TON of actual chemical molecules known as ceramides. There are different types of ceramides within this class. Ceramides are essential signaling molecules involved in cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and cell death.

Not all ceramides are good for you.

A host of literature has shown that short-chain ceramides can cause inflammation, the exact opposite thing we want in products containing ceramides and sensitive skincare.

Ceramides in the products you use are primarily from the plasma of cows. They aren't vegan. They are generally a random mix of these molecules meaning many of your skincare products have inflammatory molecules in them and can cause rebound reactions!

All ingredients except for the BioBloom™ blend serve as creating a carrier that holds the specialized targeted prebiotics -- that BioBloom™ blend.

Brontide (vegan Butylene Glycol)- a natural and sustainable version of butylene glycol fermented and biobased. Serves as an conditioner and solvent.

Glycerine (plant-based)- serves as a emollient, moisturizer, and conditioner

Zemea (plant-based Propanediol) - Solvent, humectant, and emollient

Isohexadecane (biobased) - emollient, thickener, serves to add texture

Polysorbate 80 (plant based)- emulsifier

Squalane- (plant derived) moisturizer

Sodium Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer (vegan)- stabilizer, used to increase texture and viscosity (thickness)

BioBloomTM Blend (biobased)

Use our water-based serum 1st thing after you’ve cleansed and before anything else.
If you just splash water on your face in the morning, that's great too!

Our long-chain ceramides are produced by your skin biome. YOUR skin biome.
It is not a random assortment of molecules-- it’s very specific ceramides.
We deliver the best kind of ceramides to help your skin barrier. Plus, they are native to your skin. They are VEGAN.

Our product is a water-based serum. Many participants in our study found that they could replace several products - toner/serum/moisturizer/acne and even in some cases prescription medications they were using for their skin.

If your main concerns are:
Inflammation, redness, acne, eczema, go with Skinfluence™ Calming Serum
Itchiness, go with Skinfluence™ Anti-Itch Serum
Moisture balancing, hydration, hyperpigmentation, or restoring a healthy glow, go with Skinfluence™ Ceramide Serum.

Our product formulations include our proprietary targeted prebiotics --or targeted food for your skin biome. Your skin biome eats the food and creates long-chain ceramides directly incorporated into the skin barrier, making them highly effective!

No, our products are not like existing prebiotics that feed the ENTIRE microbiome and can create community shifts or changes in the microbiome. Our products are very targeted food that is eaten and biochemically changed into long-chain ceramides. Not all organisms in the community eat our prebiotics.

No -- our products don’t need to be refrigerated. Our products don’t contain any live bacteria (probiotics), so they can be handled like other skincare products.

Something extra gentle. We love Cetaphil. I also love the Derma-e brand cleansers. I like cleansers that take off makeup but don’t strip my face of natural oils.
Don't spend a lot on a cleanser. It’s on your skin for a few seconds, and then you wash it off. It doesn’t do much! Maybe you spend more as you want a particular scent or feeling -- sure, that’s ok too. In the end, it should remove makeup and NOT strip your skin of its natural oils. We are working on a complementary cleanser- so stay tuned!

We suggest using a gentle cleanser such as Cetaphil. Suppose you need a moisturizer in addition to the serum. In that case, we recommend using something like a squalane, The Ordinary hyaluronic serum, Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Cream, or Derma-e Hydrating Day Cream. Many study participants found that they could replace many products such as toner/serum/moisturizer/acne/specialty skin products and even clinically prescribed products with our serum.
We recommend trying our product alone for a few weeks and see the results for yourself!
We are working on complementary products- so stay tuned!

We don’t use any preservatives in our products.

Skinfluence™ serums activate the microbiome and skin rather quickly ( ~15-30mins!) -- however, it takes some people a week or two to start seeing visible results. This short time is incredible as many ingredients in skincare considered efficacious (such as retinoids) take about six months to show any effects.

Inflammation can be a regular part of the body’s reaction. In this case, it’s short-term and doesn’t cause more severe damage. An example of this is a splinter in your finger causing inflammation and immune response to the foreign object and potential pathogens that have entered the body.

However, longer-term tissue inflammation, and associated markers of inflammation, have been found in a host of chronic diseases. Chronic inflammation can be caused by disease, genetic factors, allergies, microbial dysbiosis, autoimmune reactions...a host of different causes.

We know that keeping inflammation under control is a critical factor in many of these challenges. You’ve probably heard of reducing inflammation and think of this in terms of the gut.

The skin is the LARGEST organ of the human body -- and we believe reducing inflammation in the skin is the key to help reducing inflammation in other organ systems!

Our products create bioidentical ceramides. This means they are native to your skin. Other products with ceramides are derived from cow or animal plasma aren’t vegan, nor are they fully bioidentical.

The skin barrier is an important ‘layer’ that rests on top of your epidermis. It is made of fats (lipids like ceramides, free fatty acids, and cholesterol), dead skin cells, and the microbiome. More than 50% of the skin barrier is made of ceramides. Your skin’s production of ceramides starts to decline as early as your 20’s.
The skin barrier participates in keeping out irritants, allergens, pathogenic bacteria, and viruses. Additionally, the skin barrier keeps out some harmful UV rays and regulates water loss. Anti Aging!! == better skin barrier

If you have sensitive skin, chances are you’ve had issues with skincare in the past.
Our products contain no fragrances, no preservatives, no gluten and are nut-free.
As with all new skincare products, please do a quick patch test before using our product. If you notice any irritation or redness, discontinue use.

Something extra gentle. We love Cetaphil. I also love the Derma-e brand cleansers. I like cleansers that take off makeup but don’t strip my face of natural oils.
Don't spend a lot on a cleanser. It’s on your skin for a few seconds, and then you wash it off. It doesn’t do much! Maybe you spend more as you want a particular scent or feeling -- sure, that’s ok too. In the end, it should remove makeup and NOT strip your skin of its natural oils. We are working on a complementary cleanser- so stay tuned!

The microbiome is a community of organisms that lives together like a city. It’s bacteria, single-celled organisms (for example, yeasts), and viruses. This community is practically everywhere. They are on the table in front of you, on your pet, in your gut, and on your skin -- soils, etc., etc.!

When companies talk about “probiotics,” they are referring to just one part of the microbiome.

Like human DNA if we look at the genetic sequence that makes each person, it’s true everybody is different. It is also true if we look at the genetic sequence of all the organisms on your skin, the microbiome (bacteria, single-celled organisms, and viruses), each person is different.

But what if we look at what things are happening in your body -- or on your skin, the functions that are occurring, what we see is a LOT of commonalities. We SHARE so MUCH BIOLOGICALLY!! The biological processes that occur across people are very similar!
For example, this is true if you are looking across human cellular functions. This is also true if you compare different human skin microbiomes.
What’s unique about Cybele Microbiome and Rulo is that we look at the shared functional commonality across the microbiome.

Of course, people can have functions that are out of whack -- and can have a disease or pathology. But for the most part, what’s going on in our human cells, or across our skin microbiomes at their core, are functionally very similar.

Most skincare products you are using are probably not microbiome friendly. They may kill or severely affect the good functions of the microorganisms. You may see a difference with these products in the short term, but your products may stop working overtime as well.
We know this as we have tested MANY MANY existing products -- including many “clean,” “natural,” and “organic” products. Stay tuned! We have more microbiome-safe and complementary products in the works!

Just bear in mind that products that claim to be “clean” or “organic” can kill and harm many functions of the skin biome system. Snake venom is “organic” -- but we don’t want to drink it!

The Rulo brand was created and launched by Cybele Microbiome to launch consumer and skincare products. Cybele’s technologies were developed by co-founder Dr. Nicole Scott’s work in the microbiome. Cybele was founded to create consumer products using the power of the microbiome. By feeding targeted prebiotics to the existing microbiome- we can create natural, effective products in place. Some of the other ground-breaking products we are working on include a prebiotic natural insect repellent, a hyaluronic acid… too much to include here!

We are members of JLABS San Diego. JLABS is a Johnson and Johnson Incubator for biotechnology and life sciences companies.

We are backed by a National Science Foundation grant, The IndieBio Accelerator and SOSV (the World’s Premier Biotech Accelerator), Village Global VC, and an amazing team of advisors!

Rulo products are based on R&D and our patent-pending technologies and platform at Cybele.

Ceramides make up about 80% of what’s known as your skin barrier. The skin barrier is a protective layer on the top of your skin made up of lipids (fats) like ceramides, skin cells, and microorganisms. Ceramides are included in many skincare products, especially sensitive skincare. The skin barrier protects your skin from moisture loss and disease.
Keeping ceramides in the skin barrier is essential. A decrease in ceramides naturally occurs after the age of 20, and decreases in the skin barrier are a precursor to skin disease.

Ceramides are a CLASS of compounds; this means there are a TON of actual chemical molecules known as ceramides. There are different types of ceramides within this class. Ceramides are essential signaling molecules involved in cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and cell death.

Not all ceramides are good for you.

A host of literature has shown that short-chain ceramides can cause inflammation, the exact opposite thing we want in products containing ceramides and sensitive skincare.

Ceramides in the products you use are primarily from the plasma of cows. They aren't vegan. They are generally a random mix of these molecules meaning many of your skincare products have inflammatory molecules in them and can cause rebound reactions!

The answer comes from our clinical trial (thank you, participants)!

Clinical trial participants experienced:
93% increase in hydration and moisture
95% decrease in sensitivity
92% decreased itchiness
84% decreased inflammation
84% decrease in redness
72% increase in skin tone

The clinical trial was targeted to observe BioBloom™, our proprietary, natural Ttargetedprebiotic ingredient blend that acts as food for your skin biota and causes it to produce ceramides deep in your skin barrier, strengthening and repairing it.

The ceramide outputs of BioBloom™ are native to your skin because your skin makes them. That's the miracle of how BioBloom™ breaks the inflammation/itchiness cycle without inducing a rebound.
With age, your body loses the ability to produce as many ceramides. BioBloom™ rebuilds your skin barrier to a more youthful state because the long-chain ceramides your skin biome creates are directly integrated into your skin barrier. Because of this repair, participants also saw increases in skin vitality, decreases in wrinkles, and decreases in hyperpigmentation.

We use special airless containers for packaging our serum. We do this for several reasons: 1) it reduces harmful microorganisms from getting into the formulation, 2) keeps oxygen from degrading and changing the formulation 3) allows us to use NO preservatives in our formulation. Preservatives in the formulation could affect the good natural microbiome living on your skin.

If you are using skincare or cosmetics that are in jars or a dropper - and you use your fingers to take the product out or touch the dropper to your face, chances are there are a LOT of preservatives in the products to keep those organisms from the environment and your skin from growing in your products. If they aren’t using many preservatives, chances are you’ll have to throw out the product very frequently as you could get the growth of a lot of unwelcome and potentially BAD organisms. EEeeww!

We recommend those with sensitive skin should always patch test your new skincare and personal care products before use.
Before applying the product, make sure the skin is clean and dry.
Do not apply the new product if something has already been applied to the skin, as this can alter test results.
Wash the area properly and dry it thoroughly before applying the product you’re going to test.
If you’re applying the product after a hot shower, then wait 15 minutes before doing so. The heat and humidity of the hot shower may interfere with the test results.

Take a small amount of the product you are testing. Apply it on the inner area of your upper arm near the crook of your elbow, the side of your neck, or the back of your earlobe. These parts of the body are sensitive areas and an excellent place to perform a patch test.
Leave the patch test on your skin for 24 hours at a minimum.
Make sure the patch does not get wet. Avoid activities like swimming, showering, exercising, and hot environments.

Note the result after 24 hours. If there is no reaction, then you can safely use the product. If you are allergic to any of the ingredients of the product, then a reaction will appear. Allergic responses include itching, redness, swelling, a burning sensation, rash or stinging sensation.
Usually, the reaction will occur within 24 hours of application.

You can also try a patch test on other body parts such as the inner side of the wrist or the inner thigh. We advise if you are extra sensitive trying the product on the side of the neck and back of the earlobe.

A patch test is not a substitute for a laboratory patch test conducted and supervised by your doctor.

Probiotics in cosmetics are live or dead parts of bacteria. Bacteria are just one part of the microbiome.

Our products does not contain probiotics.

We feed the pre-existing organisms so that they produce long-chain ceramides.

No, our products are not like existing prebiotics that feed the ENTIRE microbiome and can create community shifts or changes in the microbiome. Our products are very targeted food that is eaten and biochemically changed into long-chain ceramides. Not all organisms in the community eat our prebiotics.

No -- our products don’t need to be refrigerated. Our products don’t contain any live bacteria (probiotics), so they can be handled like other skincare products.

We don’t use any preservatives in our products.