Science in Focus Issue 01
Atelerix
Keeping biology alive without the cold chain
Atelerix has developed a patented plant-derived hydrogel that enables the transport of living cells at ambient temperatures, with broad applications spanning clinical trials, clinical diagnostics, drug discovery and global cell therapy logistics.
The problem
Imagine spending months growing a batch of cells that could one day treat cancer. You need to send them to a colleague across the world. You pack them in dry ice, pay a specialist courier, file hazardous materials paperwork and hope. More often than not, something goes wrong. The cells arrive dead or damaged. The experiment fails.
Biological samples, including cells, tissues, organoids, blood, are fundamentally fragile. The moment they leave a controlled environment, a countdown begins. Temperature variation, mechanical stress and oxidative damage directly impact viability and downstream outcomes.
Despite decades of reliance, the cold chain remains an imperfect solution, introducing significant cost, variability and infrastructure dependency across the life sciences value chain.
What's broken about the cold chain right now?
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Economically inefficient |
Cross-border shipment of high-value biological materials, including cell therapies, can exceed $10,000 per delivery, materially impacting overall cost structures. |
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Environmentally unsustainable |
Cryogenic storage and cold-chain transport are energy-intensive and contribute significantly to lifecycle carbon emissions. |
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Scientifically limiting |
Freeze-thaw cycles compromise cell integrity, reduce viability, and introduce variability that affects experimental reproducibility and clinical outcomes. |
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Geographically restrictive |
Large parts of emerging markets lack reliable cold-chain infrastructure, limiting access to advanced diagnostics and cell-based therapies. |
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A bottleneck to innovation |
As biological complexity increases, existing logistics systems struggle to support next-generation modalities such as organoids, mRNA platforms, and personalised cell therapies. |
The science
What actually happens to a cell in transit and how Atelerix changes that
To understand what Atelerix has built, it helps to understand what it’s replacing. Ultra-cold chain preservation works by slowing metabolism, keeping cells just active enough to survive, but just cold enough to not self-destruct. It’s an external solution to an intrinsic biological problem. The moment the external environment fails, a delayed flight, a customs hold, a power cut the biology pays the price.
Atelerix takes a fundamentally different approach. Instead of relying on external temperature control, its platform enables cells to stabilise within a controlled microenvironment at ambient temperature. At the core of this approach is a proprietary, plant-based hydrogel. When biological samples are combined with the hydrogel prior to transport:
- A stable microenvironment is created around the cells
- Chemical balance and hydration are maintained
- Cell membranes are protected.
This allows cells to enter a stabilised, low-activity state at ambient temperatures, without freezing or structural damage. At the destination, the hydrogel is removed and cells resume normal activity, with viability levels remaining high even after extended transport durations.
"Atelerix doesn't just slow cells down - it teaches them to wait. The hydrogel creates an environment where the cell itself becomes the preservation mechanism."
This same underlying mechanism is applied across a growing range of biological workflows. Products such as CytoStor™ (cells, viral vectors and LNPs), STORganoid™ (organoids and spheroids), TissueReady™/TissueReady™ Plus (biopsy and resection samples), WellReady™ (assay-ready plates), BloodReady™ (whole blood samples), and LeukoStor™ (leukapheresis for cell therapy) extend the platform across research, diagnostics, and therapeutic applications. The portfolio continues to evolve as the core technology is adapted to new biological use cases.
| Atelerix | Ultra-cold chain (status quo) |
|---|---|
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Supports transport at 4–25°C without freezing |
Requires dry ice or liquid nitrogen |
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Compatible with standard courier systems |
Specialist handling throughout |
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Works without cold chain infrastructure |
Fails without continuous infrastructure |
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Low cost, near-zero emissions |
High cost, high emissions |
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Designed for global accessibility |
Limited geographic accessibility |
Real-world impact
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50-90%
Reduction in logistics costs per shipment
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99.7%
Reduction in CO₂ emissions vs dry ice
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4–25°C
Full operating range, no freezing required
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Global
Accessible without cold-chain infrastructure
The more disruptive implication is structural. In many parts of the world, access to advanced biological workflows is constrained not by science, but by infrastructure. A hospital in Lagos, a research institution in Manila, a diagnostic lab in rural India — none of these can operate at the frontier of biological medicine today because the ultra-cold chain simply doesn’t reach them reliably.
Atelerix doesn’t improve that infrastructure. It removes the dependency entirely.
For cell and gene therapies, among the most promising and logistically complex areas of modern medicine, this has direct implications. Lower logistics overhead can improve commercial viability. More stable starting biological material reduces the risk of failed manufacturing runs. More reliable transport enables more consistent supply chains and ultimately, broader patient access.
Milestones
Founded in 2017 as a Newcastle University spin-out, Atelerix began as a scientific insight, that the same biological principles behind animal hibernation could be engineered into a material capable of preserving any living cell. That insight is now a patented platform with seven commercial products, customers across multiple geographies, and clinical validation in a first-in-human study.
The de-risking journey — at a glance
| Stage | What it means for investors |
|---|---|
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IP secured and patented |
Proprietary platform protected. Competitors cannot replicate the core mechanism. |
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Commercial products launched |
Revenue-generating. Not a pre-product bet — customers are already buying. |
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First-in-human clinical validation |
Technology proven in a live clinical setting. The highest standard of real-world proof. |
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$6.63M raised from specialist investors |
Backed by o2h Ventures, ACF Investors, Cambridge Angels, Maven Cognition. Peer validation from investors who understand the space. |
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Four regional markets entered |
Europe, China, Africa, Middle East, each with local partnerships, not just export agreements. |
The momentum right now
In the past twelve months alone, Atelerix has launched new product categories, expanded leadership, and established partnerships across multiple regions.
This includes:
- Distribution and expansion agreements across Europe, China, Africa, and the Middle East
- Integration into advanced biological workflows, including organoid models
- Continued expansion of its commercial and regulatory footprint
The Middle East partnership is particularly significant. It is not simply a distribution agreement. It brings local manufacturing capability, regulatory engagement with the Saudi FDA, and access to sovereign-backed capital, creating the foundation for long-term regional scale.
The commercial infrastructure being built today is what will underpin the next phase of scalable and defensible growth.
Investor Lens
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Platform IP with compounding value |
The core hydrogel formulation is patented and broadly applicable, not a single-indication asset. This compounds with each new product and each new market. |
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Infrastructure-level disruption |
Competes not with a product but with the global cold-chain system, with clear advantages across cost, reliability, sustainability, and access. |
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Positioned at a growth inflection point |
Commercial products in the market, revenue generation underway, and expanding global partnerships signal a transition from validation to scale. |