| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Biotechnology |
| Founded | 2003 |
| Headquarters | North Brunswick, NJ, USA |
| Key people | Christian Kopfli (CEO), Kambiz Shekdar (CSO) |
| Employees | 80 (2009) |
| Website | www.chromocell.com |
Chromocell is an American biotechnology company located in North Brunswick, NJ. They are currently in the Commercialization Center for Innovative Technology, a bio-incubator facility supported by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. The company has grown to over 50 employees and will move to larger space in the Technology Center of New Jersey also in North Brunswick[1]. Chromocell was founded in 2003 by Nobel laureate Gunter Blobel and his student, Kambiz Shekdar.
Chromocell was founded to commercialize an innovative technology capable of detecting RNA in living cells named Chromovert.[2] The technique utilizes fluorescent oligonucleotide probes which fluoresce upon target binding. Coupled to flow cytometric cell sorting, the process enables the isolation of cells expressing one or more genes of interest. The basic technology can be applied in a variety of fields including biologics production, flavors research, stem cells and drug discovery.
Chromocell’s drug discovery pipeline is focused on the identification and development of novel therapeutics against complex and challenging drug targets that require the creation of complex multi-gene cell lines or the establishment of large panels of related receptors to determine specificity.[3]
Chromocell Corporation was listed in NJBIZ’s September 15 2008 issue as one of the top New Jersey biotechnology firms. [4]