Research Collaboration for Mekonos, Bit.bio to Advance Cell Engineering

Mekonos, Inc. announced a new research collaboration with bit.bio on May 4, 2023 to test and optimize non-viral delivery of bit.bio’s patented safe harbor gene-targeting approach. This approach is defined as being used to express transcription factor combinations to reprogram human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs).

A gene-targeting route is meant to be an alternative for viral vector delivery, which will allow bit.bio to engineer stem cells into any mature, functional human cell type with higher efficiency, speed, and control, according to the press release.

“The combination of Mekonos’ unique, silicon chip-based delivery platform with bit.bio’s leading cellular reprogramming technologies will enable powerful new levels of precision and efficiency in the engineering of iPSCs,” said Jake Lesnik, VP of Business Development at Mekonos, in a press release. “We are excited to partner with the world-class team at bit.bio— leaders in synthetic biology and the engineering of human cells—and to leverage Mekonos’ unique non-viral platform for ex-vivo delivery of reprogramming factors to engineer human cells at unprecedented scale and efficiency.”

Source: Mekonos