CellRev at the cutting edge of biological innovation for commercial scale cell manufacturing lands £1.4m investment

CellRev’s technology provides cellular product developers and manufacturers with a scalable cost-efficient production platform for adherent cells. The company’s continuous processing platform is gaining interest worldwide with a full launch planned in 2024.

The startup today announced that it has raised £1.05 million in an investment round led by the North East Innovation Fund, supported by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by Northstar Ventures, alongside Happiness Capital, a global impact investor, and CPT Capital. CellRev has also secured £330,000 of grant funding provided by Innovate UK through its Future Economy Investor Partnership programme.

CellRev, a spin-out from Newcastle University, has developed a suite of technologies which offer scalable, quality-controlled, efficient, and affordable processes that make adherent cell culture a viable commercial option for innovative cell and gene therapies and cultured meat. The global production of cells is forecast to grow at pace over the next decade and CellRev has developed significant commercial interest in its technology.

The company was founded by Dr Martina Miotto, who while completing her PhD in Corneal Tissue Engineering, discovered that with the right additive in the system cells that were adherent to a surface could continue to proliferate and detach in a controlled manner. This breakthrough forms the basis of CellRev’s technology. Together with co-founder Che Connon, Professor of Tissue Engineering at Newcastle University Dr Miotto continued ongoing lab research, eventually spinning out the research from Newcastle University into company CellRev.

Chris Green, CEO of CellRev, said: ‘2024 is shaping up to be a defining year for CellRev with a significant product launch and some big customer collaborations in the pipeline. Continuous processing continues to be labelled an ‘unlock’ for an industry struggling with scale, cost, and product consistency challenges so finally being able to get our product into the hands of customers is huge. I can’t thank Northstar, our existing investors, and IUK enough for their continued support.’

Thomas O’Neill, Investment Manager at Northstar Ventures, said: ‘We are delighted to support CellRev with further funding, alongside co-investors and Innovate UK. CellRev has developed leading technology with potential applications across many high growth and exciting sectors and this additional funding will enable them to capitalise on the significant opportunities they have in their pipeline.  

Find out more about the North East Innovation Fund