CellChorus, a spinoff of the Single Cell Lab at the University of Houston, has announced new funding from an SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH) through its National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).
The company is behind TIMING, or Time-lapse Imaging Microscopy In Nanowell Grids, a technology that utilizes visualization AI to help scientists understand cell functions such as activation, killing, and movement. This deeper understanding of immune cells could lead to the development of novel therapies for various disorders, including cancers and infectious diseases.
Rebecca Berdeaux, vice president of science at CellChorus, expressed gratitude to NCATS for supporting the development of application-specific kits that apply dynamic, functional single-cell analysis of immune cell phenotype and function. These kits aim to provide end-users with rapid, specific, and predictive results to accelerate translational research and the development of more effective cell therapies.
The company has received a two-year, $2.1 million Phase II grant following a $350,000 Phase I grant. These funds will be utilized to develop TIMING kits that manufacture analytics to accelerate translational research and the development and manufacture of more effective cell therapies.
TIMING has already been extensively validated, with over 200 peer-reviewed papers describing various cell types and therapies using data from TIMING assays. The technology has benefited industry leaders in research, clinical development, and manufacturing. With the new grant, TIMING will become more widely available to scientists studying the inner workings of immune cells.
