Prince William Science Accelerator welcomes Celetrix, LLC

From Prince William County Department of Economic Development: 

Adding to its growing portfolio of life sciences companies, the Prince William Science Accelerator is set to welcome yet another resident – Celetrix LLC (Celetrix) – a biotechnology company. The company will be the fifth tenant located within the brand new wet lab facility.

“We view our decision to locate in the Prince William Science Accelerator as critical to our continued success. Our new location allows us the opportunity to foster and leverage relationships with other tenants within the Science Accelerator,” said Celetrix Chief Executive Officer, Jian Chen. “Moreover, it places us within close proximity to strategic assets in Innovation Park such as the National Institutes of Health Biomedical Research Laboratory, the Virginia Department of Forensic Sciences Northern Laboratory as well as George Mason University’s (Mason’s) Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine; while enjoying the benefits of a cost effective, state-of-the art wet lab space; and access to a talent pipeline that is second to none.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Celetrix to our diverse and growing life sciences community here in Prince William County,” said Jeff Kaczmarek, Executive Director, Prince William County Department of Economic Development. “When we launched the Science Accelerator in 2014, it was generally anticipated that it would be a success based on the expressed need for commercially available wet lab space in the County. However, the fact that we are approaching full occupancy within such a short space of time, has been a welcome boon.”

“The mix of life sciences companies we’ve attracted are all at various stages of research, development and/or commercialization within their respective specialties, which allows for more meaningful information sharing and mentorship that can make a material difference in the success of early stage companies. This is what we envisioned when we embarked on this initiative and I am happy to see it come to fruition,” added Kaczmarek.

Celetrix’s flagship product is an electroporator which is used to deliver DNA, RNA and proteins into cells. Electroporators are widely used in the study and application of molecular and cellular biology, immunology, hematology, neuroscience, cancer research and drug discovery. However, Celetrix’s device is decidedly unique. Whereas traditional electroporators can be highly toxic to cells due to the destruction of cell membranes when delivering DNA, RNA and proteins into cells, the Celetrix electroporator solves this problem, thereby achieving high-efficiency, low-toxicity electroporation. The company has already achieved success in marketing its electroporator within the United States and increasing sales foretell a breakthrough year in 2016. Most recently, Celetrix was awarded a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant in the amount of $186,180.

About Celetrix LLC
Celetrix LLC was founded in 2012 in Virginia to commercialize new types of high efficiency electroporators. The company has a team of accomplished biomedical scientists. Celetrix has revamped the traditional procedures of cell electroporation with the introduction of innovative electroporation devices and methods. Besides the electroporation products, Celetrix provides development services to biotech companies and research institutions. Celetrix is also a proud participant of the NIH SBIR/STTR grant program. To learn more visit: www.celetrix.com

To learn more from the Prince William County Department of Economic Development, Virginia Science and Technology entrepreneurs are invited to attend a Lunch & Learn with Lab Tours to be held at Mason’s Science and Technology Campus, from 11:45 a.m. – 1:00 pm on September 22, 2016. To receive E-Newsletters visit us at: www.PWCEconDev.org or follow us on Twitter @PWCDED.