bit.bio introduces first product in groundbreaking ioCRISPR-Ready Cells™ product range, paving the way for new advances in disease modelling and drug discovery

• CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons™ are first-in-class stem-cell derived human neurons containing a constitutively-expressed Cas9 nuclease for gene knockouts and CRISPR screens.
• New cell type creates an opportunity for research and drug discovery scientists to knockout any gene of interest in glutamatergic neurons; potential applications include studies of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease as well as certain types of dementia.
• ioCells™ products are reprogrammed from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) by opti-ox™, bit.bio’s precision cell programming technology.

bit.bio, the company coding human cells for novel cures, today announces the launch of the first offering from its new product range - ioCRISPR-Ready Cells™. This new range has been designed for scientists looking to generate gene knockouts in physiologically relevant human cells.

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CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons (Graphic: Business Wire)

CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons were developed by adding a constitutively-expressed Cas9 nuclease to bit.bio’s wild type cells. These cells enable gene knockouts and can be scaled to high throughput pooled or arrayed CRISPR screens. Potential applications include functional genomics, disease model generation, drug target identification and fundamental human biology research.

The cells are precision reprogrammed from human iPSCs with bit.bio’s opti-ox technology, meaning they are defined and highly characterised human neurons that have inherent experimental scalability, offer unparallelled consistency and are simple to handle and culture.

Mark Kotter, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, bit.bio said:

“Today, we're bringing simplicity to complexity. With ioCRISPR-Ready Cells, we're putting the future of genomics in the hands of every scientist. This is the next step on our mission to democratise access to human cells and we look forward to seeing the breakthroughs and discoveries that will be enabled by this new product range.”

CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons arrive ready-to-use and enable researchers to achieve high gene knockout efficiencies and functional experimental readouts in days. This significantly reduces experimental timelines. In addition, scientists no longer need to spend months engineering and characterising their own Cas9-stable iPSC lines and associated differentiation protocols. Using CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons, robust experimental readouts can be achieved without prior expertise in iPSC differentiation or guide RNA delivery optimisation.

Farah Patell-Socha, VP Research Products, bit.bio said:

“Scientists will now have access to a powerful functional genomics tool to study genes of interest in a defined human iPSC-derived cell system. Gene knockout experiments such as CRISPR screens that would previously require substantial time and specialised skills can now be undertaken in weeks by scientists with all levels of experience.”

CRISPR-Ready ioGlutamatergic Neurons are now available to order via the bit.bio website.

About bit.bio

bit.bio is a synthetic biology company focused on human cells that is advancing medicine (UN SDG9) and enabling curative treatments (UN SDG3). The company does this by industrialising the manufacture of human cells and making them more accessible. The company was spun out of the University of Cambridge in 2016 and has since raised approximately $200m from investors such as Arch Ventures, Foresite Capital, Milky Way, Charles River Laboratories, National Resilience, Tencent, Verition Fund and Puhua Capital.

bit.bio's opti-ox™ precision cell programming and manufacturing technology enables conversion of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into any desired human cell type in a single step. This can be achieved within days and at industrial scale, while maintaining exceptional purity and unparalleled consistency.

Our discovery platform extends this approach to any desired cell type by identifying the transcription factor combinations that define cell states (including identity, cell subtype identity, maturity) using high throughput screens and advanced data analysis. We believe that opti-ox can revolutionise regenerative medicine similarly to how CRISPR is unlocking gene therapy.

bit.bio's cell therapy pipeline is focused on serious diseases that currently lack effective treatments. Our preclinical research areas include liver, immunology and metabolic disease, and we have a collaboration with BlueRock Therapeutics (Bayer AG) focused on regulatory T cell (Treg) based cell therapies. In addition, our extensive ioCells™ research cell product portfolio, which includes wild type, disease model and CRISPR-ready human cells, is opening up new possibilities for studying human biology and developing new medicines in both research and high throughput and high content drug discovery.

For more information, please visit www.bit.bio.

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