Microfluidics Startup NanoCellect Adds Strategic Advisors and Nabs Another $700K from the NIH

San Diego, CA, October 19, 2013 --(PR.com)-- NanoCellect, (previously called NanoSort) aims to facilitate breakthrough biomedical discoveries by making cell analysis and sorting technology more affordable and easier to use. Spunout from UCSD in late 2009, NanoCellect has now raised over $3.3M including a new $700K grant to continue developing microfluidic cell analysis technology. The team also recently expanded by adding top tier advisory board members with expertise in flow cytometry, microfluidics, and commercialization. Advisors include serial entrepreneur Larry Bock, Caliper co-founder Wally Price, and flow cytometry experts John Nolan and James Wood. The team also engaged marketing and commercialization consultant Judy Macemon who was previously at Helixis, BD, Life Tech and Illumina.

NanoCellect was founded by a team of biologists and engineers who saw opportunities in the growing field of flow cytometry, a ~$1B instrument market. More importantly, they identified a demand to purify specific cells from complex mixtures by enabling better access to cell sorters. Purified cell populations can be required to take advantage of gene sequencing or other molecular assays, making cell sorters essential to many researchers. “The technology is analogous to the popular coin sorter CoinStar but for cell biologists,” says CEO of NanoCellect, Jose Morachis, “You throw in a mixture of cells (coins) and a machine effortlessly counts them and sorts them into individual groups.” NanoCellect’s technology makes the process simpler and much more affordable for most labs. Using disposable microfluidic chips makes the process easier and avoids issues faced by traditional systems. This approach removes the need for a dedicated, trained technician to operate the instrument, and reduces the cost of the instrument itself compared to other commercial systems. The technology also has potential clinical applications that are currently being developed.

NanoCellect is now seeking industrial partners and investors to move their latest instrument, the WOLF Cell Sorter into the hands of scientists. With recent NIH funding, NanoCellect expects to expand their IP portfolio and product pipeline for new applications. The recent SBIR was funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the NIH.