Portal Biotechnologies

Portal Biotechnologies builds mechanoporation instruments and consumables for cell engineering, passing cells through thin silicon membranes to transiently open them and deliver cargo. The approach delivers RNA, gene editors, proteins and probes into hard-to-transfect cell types without electroporation or viral vectors, while preserving cell viability and normal function. Portal sells a family of systems spanning research-scale discovery, high-throughput screening and GMP clinical manufacturing, plus validated application kits. The company reports more than 100 customers, including seven of the top ten pharmaceutical companies, and holds an $8M DARPA contract for a portable red blood cell engineering device.

Mechanical, membrane-based delivery works across virtually any cargo type and any cell type, including cells that resist electroporation and viral delivery, and scales on one platform from a benchtop research instrument to a GMP system processing over a billion cells per minute.