With his deep industry knowledge and strategic insight, Schmid will play a pivotal role in guiding faCellitate’s growth and innovation roadmap, particularly in advancing technologies that support the future of stem cell therapies and 3D cell culture.

“It is a special honour to welcome Heinz Schmid to the faCellitate Advisory Board,” said Dr. Simon Widmaier, CEO of faCellitate. “His unparalleled expertise will be instrumental as we continue to redefine the standards for functional life science consumables. This appointment marks a significant milestone in our mission to empower researchers worldwide.”

“I am excited to join faCellitate’s Advisory Board and contribute to their mission of advancing life science research,” said Heinz Schmid. “faCellitate’s innovative approach and commitment to excellence align perfectly with my values. I look forward to supporting the team in driving impactful scientific progress.”

MEXI, one of Germany’s most highly endowed start-up awards, celebrated its 20th year with a grand event at the Musikpark in Mannheim. The ceremony, organized by the Mannheim Economic Development Agency in partnership with NEXT MANNHEIM, honoured twelve visionary finalists across four categories: Technology, Services, Social Economy, and Fashion. faCellitate GmbH emerged as the top winner in the Technology category, impressing the jury with its ground-breaking technology to reduce the need for animal models in drug testing, offering innovative options for regenerative medicine and biotechnology.

“It is an incredible honour to be recognized at MEXI, especially in its anniversary year,” said Dr. Simon Widmaier, CEO of faCellitate GmbH. “Our team has been dedicated to advancing innovative solutions for 3D cell culture. Winning this award validates our hard work and inspires us to continue to advance cutting edge solutions in biomedicine.”

As recently published in a peer-reviewed journal BIOFLOAT by faCellitate is one of the world’s most advanced coatings for 3D cell cultures. The technology is designed to accelerate drug development by offering more predictive human-based models, reducing the dependency on animal testing, and opening new doors for applications in personalised medicine, cancer research, and beyond.

A broadly designed comparative study conducted by researchers from Karolinska Institute in Stockholm has shown that BIOFLOAT 3D Cell Culture Plates have performance characteristics superior over all other 3D Cell Culture Plates investigated.

Mannheim (Germany) and Stockholm (Sweden), February 26, 2024: faCellitate GmbH has announced the results of a performance study of 3D Cell Culture Plates conducted in cooperation with researchers at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, one of the most renowned academic research institutions in Europe.

3D Cell Culture has become an important technology to study biological processes. The cellular aggregates called “Spheroids” employed in 3D Cell Culture allow for an interaction between the cells similar to the conditions in the living organism. This allows for better substituting large scale-animal testing.

„Our study is the first of this kind showing that today’s 96-well spheroid plates are generally meeting high standards.” explained Professor Volker Lauschke, Principal Investigator of the study, Professor in Translational Pharmacology and Director of the Biofabrication and Tissue Engineering Facility at Karolinska Institute. “Differences between different 3D Cell Culture Plates can become significant however for specific applications.” Prof. Lauschke continued. “This is why validating different plates from different manufacturers before embarking on larger projects is advisable.”

96-well plates are predominantly used in academic research while industry often employs 384-well plates for advanced high-throughput screening. “Producing 384-well spheroid plates requires a more demanding technology.”, Prof. Lauschke continued, “Here the BIOFLOAT plates allow for increased reproducibility and are clearly leading the field.”

“We are very pleased about the results of the study”, Dr. Valentina Fermi, Director of Business Development at faCellitate, commented the published results. “The BIOFLOAT Technology has now proven to provide top performing results in the competitive area of 3D Cell Culture”.

The Publication can be download at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/biot.202300587

About faCellitate GmbH:  faCellitate is a spin-off of BASF SE. faCellitate develops and commercializes surface coatings based on its proprietary and patented technology platform. It enables the synthesis and scalable production of biomimetic materials. BIOFLOAT is faCellitate’s first product: a unique surface coating for the cultivation of 3D cellular models. In addition, faCellitate is developing biomimetic coatings for new applications such as stem cell therapy and regenerative medicine. faCellitate’s surface coatings are chemically defined, free of animal materials also suitable in principle for use on humans.

About Karolinska Institute: Karolinska Institute is one of the world’s leading medical universities. It accounts for the single largest share of all academic medical research conducted in Sweden and offers the country’s broadest range of education in medicine and health sciences. The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute selects the Nobel laureates in Physiology or Medicine.  

Veröffentlichung im Biotechnology Journal

Eine breit angelegte Vergleichsstudie, die von Forschenden des Karolinska Instituts in Stockholm durchgeführt wurde, hat gezeigt, dass BIOFLOAT 3D-Zellkulturplatten Leistungsmerkmale besitzen, die den anderen untersuchten 3D-Zellkulturplatten überlegen sind.

Mannheim (Deutschland) und Stockholm (Schweden), 26. Februar 2024: Die faCellitate GmbH hat die Ergebnisse einer Vergleichsstudie von 3D-Zellkulturplatten bekannt gegeben, die von Forschenden des Karolinska Instituts in Stockholm, Schweden, einer der renommiertesten akademischen Forschungseinrichtungen in Europa, durchgeführt wurde.

Die 3D-Zellkultur hat sich zu einer wichtigen Technologie für die Untersuchung biologischer Prozesse entwickelt. Die in der 3D-Zellkultur verwendeten Zellaggregate, so genannte "Sphäroide", ermöglichen eine Interaktion zwischen den Zellen, die den Bedingungen im lebenden Organismus ähnelt. So stellt die 3D Zellkultur einen besseren Ersatz für Tierversuche dar als die konventionelle Zellkultur.

"Unsere Studie ist die erste dieser Art, die zeigt, dass die heutigen 96-Well-Sphäroid-Platten generell hohe Standards erfüllen", erklärte Professor Volker Lauschke, Hauptautor der Studie, Professor für Translationale Pharmakologie und Direktor der „Biofabrication and Tissue Engineering Facility“ am Karolinska Institut. "Unterschiede zwischen verschiedenen 3D-Zellkulturplatten können aber für bestimmte Anwendungen trotzdem bedeutsam werden." so Prof. Lauschke weiter. "Deshalb ist es ratsam, verschiedene Platten unterschiedlicher Hersteller zu validieren, bevor man größere Projekte startet."

96-Well-Platten werden überwiegend in der akademischen Forschung verwendet, während die Industrie häufig 384-Well-Platten für die technisch herausfordernden Hochdurchsatz-Screenings einsetzt. "Die Herstellung von 384-Well-Sphäroidplatten erfordert eine anspruchsvollere Technologie", so Prof. Lauschke weiter, "hier ermöglichen die Biofloat-Platten eine höhere Reproduzierbarkeit und sind eindeutig führend auf diesem Gebiet."

"Wir freuen uns sehr über die Ergebnisse der Studie", kommentierte Dr. Valentina Fermi, Director of Business Development bei faCellitate, die veröffentlichten Ergebnisse. "Die BIOFLOAT-Technologie hat nun bewiesen, dass sie im wettbewerbsintensiven Bereich der 3D-Zellkultur erstklassige Ergebnisse liefert."

Die Publikation kann unter http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/biot.202300587  heruntergeladen werden.

Über faCellitate GmbH: faCellitate ist ein Spin-off der BASF.  faCellitate entwickelt und vermarktet Oberflächenbeschichtungen auf der Basis seiner proprietären und patentierten Technologieplattform. Sie ermöglicht die Synthese und skalierbare Produktion von biomimetischen Materialien. BIOFLOAT ist das erste Produkt von faCellitate: eine einzigartige Oberflächenbeschichtung für die Kultivierung von 3D-Zellmodellen. Darüber hinaus entwickelt faCellitate Beschichtungen für neue Anwendungen für die Stammzelltherapie und die regenerative Medizin. Die Oberflächenbeschichtungen von faCellitate sind chemisch definiert, frei von tierischen Materialien und prinzipiell auch für die Anwendung am Menschen geeignet.

Über das Karolinska-Institut: Das Karolinska Institut ist eine der führenden medizinischen Universitäten der Welt. Es hat den größten Anteil an der gesamten akademischen medizinischen Forschung in Schweden und bietet das breiteste Ausbildungsangebot in Medizin und Gesundheitswissenschaften des Landes. Die Nobelversammlung des Karolinska-Instituts wählt die Nobelpreisträger für Physiologie oder Medizin aus.

faCellitate expands its product range with the launch of three new BIOFLOAT -coated flat-bottom microplates; a 96-well format, soon to be followed by 24- and 6-well plates. This innovative series is purposefully crafted as an addition to the BIOFLOAT 96-well and 384-well U-Bottom plates, catering to spheroid and organoid applications

The BIOFLOAT coated flat-bottom microplate sets a new standard with superior anti-adhesive qualities, unlocking the potential for cultivating cells in 3D or in suspension (e.g., T cells) with the flat bottom allowing a better imaging of 3D cultures compared to U-bottom plates.

Coming soon, the latest BIOFLOAT 96-well flat-bottom format microplate will also be followed by 24- and 6-well formats. BIOFLOAT plates, adhering to the SLAS/ANSI standard, ensure compatibility with all major high throughput screening workflows, providing a versatile solution for diverse laboratory applications.

The BIOFLOAT coating is known for its exceptional scratch-resistance. This important property is conferred by the unique polymeric structure of the coating which forms an ultra-thin film. This allows for the unparalleled data consistency conferred by the BIOFLOAT coating in laboratory settings. Renowned for its anti-adhesive properties, experts are heralding the BIOFLOAT 96-well U-Bottom plate as a New Standard for rapid and uniform spheroid formation.

The 96-well microplate features flat-bottom coated with BIOFLOAT Ultra-Low Attachment (ULA) surface coating, facilitating the effortless formation of organoids or multiple spheroids in every well. This is achieved through a user-friendly ‚out-of-the-box‘ approach. The crystal-clear well-bottom is optimized for seamless read-out via microscopes or scanners. 

• faCellitate expands its BIOFLOAT coated microplate portfolio by a 384 well format specifically designed for spheroid culture
• The exceptional performance of the BIOFLOAT coating combined with the high density 384-format makes the new product solution particularly valuable for high-throughput spheroid screening
• Accelerated assays due to spheroid culture without centrifugation and unique spheroid quality – experts call the New BIOFLOAT 384 well plate The New Gold Standard for fast and uniform spheroid formation

faCellitate has expanded its spheroid microplate product portfolio by introducing the BIOFLOAT 384-well plate. The new product was developed specifically for spheroid cell cultures and allows life science researchers to cultivate spheroids at higher density which is vitally important for high-throughput screening approaches and assays particularly in toxicology, drug discovery and in cancer research.

“By launching the new 384-well format, faCellitate is consolidating and extending the BIOFLOAT product line in high-throughput screening applications” said Dr. Simon Widmaier, Managing Director of faCellitate GmbH. “By allowing larger datasets and larger number of compounds through drug screening, in physiologically more relevant 3D environments, faCellitate contributes to the acceleration of the life science research and drug discovery process.”

Because Time is Precious: The new BIOFLOAT 384 well plate allows the cultivation of round spheroids without the need of an additional centrifugation step which saves valuable assay runtime, a game changer in the filed of spheroid high-throughput screening.

Streamlining research and development in the context of spheroid culture and in an automated environment, the BIOFLOAT 384-well microplate enables life scientists around the world to generate, culture and analyze 384 three-dimensional multicellular spheroids in one high-density micro well plate. The spheroid microplate eliminates the need for centrifugation or a transfer step for read-out, which saves precious time and effectively prevents cell damage or cell loss.

Because Performance is Key: The BIOFLOAT coating is proven to be mechanically exceptionally strong, which is a success factor for many cell-based assays in terms of data consistency generated in a laboratory context. Based on the high-density 384 format and the unprecedented uniformity of spheroid formation, time savings and consistency of the produced data, the new product solution is particularly valuable in the context of high-throughput screening (HTS). Due to its performance characteristics, experts call the BIOFLOAT 384 well plate The New Gold Standard for fast and uniform spheroid formation.

The newer spheroid microplate format, in addition to faCellitate’s current BIOFLOAT 96-format, is compatible with the SLAS/ANSI standard and as such compatible with all major high-throughput screening workflows.

The microplate design features round U-bottom wells coated with the BIOFLOAT Ultra-Low Attachment (ULA) surface coating to enable uniform, centered, single-spheroid formation across all wells with a simple “out-of-the-box” and “centrifugation-free” protocol. The clear well-bottom is optimized for read-out via microscopes or scanners.

About faCellitate

faCellitate GmbH, is developing interactive surface coatings for advanced cell technologies and regenerative medicine and announced today the launch of another product in its product line BIOFLOAT, a best-in-class surface coating for 3D cell culture. BIOFLOAT is a fast and easy-to-use inert coating for cell culture labware that creates optimal conditions for the 3D culture of multicellular spheroids.

For further information, please visit the Product Page and follow faCellitate on LinkedIn and Twitter.

• Erfolgreiches Closing der Seedrunde über 3,7 Millionen Euro unter Beteiligung von SARSTEDT, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), R3 Consulting, ARVE Capital, ROI Verwaltungsgesellschaft und Chemovator.
• faCellitate hat eine intelligente und extrem niedrig anhaftende Plattform für Polymeroberflächenbeschichtungen entwickelt. Das erste auf dem Markt eingeführte Produkt zielt auf die 3D-Zellkultur ab und ermöglicht eine einfache, zuverlässige und reproduzierbare 3D-Zellkultivierung, die den derzeitigen Goldstandard in der Branche herausfordert. Die Einführung weiterer Produkte auf dieser Basis ist bereits angelaufen.
• Die faCellitate-Plattform eignet sich für die Beschichtung einer breiten Palette von Kunststoffen und Glaswaren. Zusammen mit der Möglichkeit der gezielten chemischen Modifikation der Polymerbeschichtung ermöglicht dies die Lösung zahlreicher ungelöster Probleme in Zellkultur- und Industrieanlagenanwendungen.

Das Mannheimer Life-Science-Startup faCellitate hat im Closing der Seedfinanzierung erfolgreich 3,7 Millionen Euro eingesammelt. Mit an Bord sind namhafte Investoren wie SARSTEDT, HTGF, R3 Consulting, ROI Verwaltungsgesellschaft, ARVE Capital und Chemovator.

Das Team von faCellitate unter der Leitung von Mitgründer und Geschäftsführer Simon Widmaier entwickelt polymere Oberflächenbeschichtungen für Kunststoffe und Glaswaren, die vielfältige Anwendungen wie dreidimensionale Zellkultur, zell- und proteinabweisende Oberflächenumgebungen oder chemisch induzierte Materialoberflächenmodifikationen ermöglichen.

Das erste Produkt des Unternehmens, eine 96-Well-Platte mit einer hochgradig antiadhäsiven Oberflächenbeschichtung, BIOFLOAT, ist ideal für die schnelle und zuverlässige Herstellung perfekter 3D-Sphäroide, die sich als In-vitro-Modelle in der Grundlagenforschung und Arzneimittelentwicklung eignen und Vorteile gegenüber bestehenden Produkten bieten. Diese einzigartigen Eigenschaften machen es zu einem Premiumprodukt für die 3D-Zellkultur und geben Wissenschaftlern ein schnelles und äußerst zuverlässiges Werkzeug für ihre Forschung an die Hand.

Das Unternehmen arbeitet derzeit an der Umsetzung zusätzlicher Plattenformate, der Einführung neuer Produktlinien auf der Grundlage seiner proprietären Plattformtechnologie und der weiteren Steigerung des Unternehmenswertes durch die Erschließung von Cross-Selling-Möglichkeiten, die auf dem bestehenden Kundenstamm aufbauen.

Das Unternehmen wurde im Rahmen des BASF-internen Venture Builders Chemovator gestartet und Ende 2021 ausgegründet.

Dr. Simon Widmaier, Geschäftsführer von faCellitate, sagt: "Wir sind begeistert, dass faCellitate sehr erfahrene Investoren gewinnen konnte, die unseren Weg und unsere Vision teilen und uns die Möglichkeit geben, zur Innovation im Life-Science-Sektor beizutragen. Zusätzlich zu den VC-Investoren hat sich mit SARSTEDT ein hochkarätiger strategischer Investor in die Liste der Kapitalgeber eingereiht. Mit dem erhaltenen Kapital können wir mit voller Kraft an der Weiterentwicklung unserer Technologieplattform arbeiten, um mehr hochwertige Produkte zu entwickeln, die in modernen Biotech-Laboren benötigt werden."

Dr. Klaus Schollmeier, Beiratsvorsitzender von faCellitate, fügt hinzu: "Mit einem Produkt das bereits auf dem Markt ist und eine hervorragende Kundenresonanz erfährt, sowie mehreren Produkten, die in den nächsten 12 bis 24 Monaten auf den Markt kommen, ist faCellitate für eine hervorragende Zukunft gut aufgestellt."

Timo Schretzmair, CFO von SARSTEDT, betont: "Das faCellitate-Team hat bereits erste Erfolge bei der Entwicklung einer einzigartigen Beschichtungstechnologie mit beispielloser, bewährter Produktperformance erzielt, die das Potenzial hat, weltweit neue Wege für Forschung und Wissenschaft zu eröffnen – wir bei SARSTEDT freuen uns sehr, Teil der Entwicklung von faCellitate zu sein."

Dr. Angelika Vlachou, Principal beim High-Tech Gründerfonds, die faCellitate als Beiratsmitglied begleitet, sagt: "Robuste und zuverlässige 3D-Zellkultursysteme werden zunehmend zu einem integralen Bestandteil des biomedizinischen Wirkstoff- und Targetscreenings. Gemeinsam mit unseren Co-Investoren freuen wir uns darauf, das Produktportfolio und die Pipeline von faCellitate weiter auszubauen."

• Closing of seed round completed raising €3.7 million from SARSTEDT, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), R3 Consulting, ARVE Capital, ROI Verwaltungsgesellschaft and Chemovator.
• faCellitate has developed an intelligent and ultra-low attachment polymer surface coating platform. The first launched product thereof is targeting 3D cell culture, enabling simple, reliable, and reproducible 3D cell cultivation that challenges the industry’s gold standard. The roll out of further products on this basis is underway.
• faCellitate’s platform is suitable for coating a wide range of plastic and glassware. Together with the ability of targeted chemical modification of the polymer coating, this enables the solution of numerous unsolved problems in cell culture and industrial facility applications.

Mannheim-based life science startup faCellitate has successfully raised 3.7 million Euro in its closing of seed funding. On board are well-known investors such as SARSTEDT, HTGF, R³ Consulting, ROI Verwaltungsgesellschaft, ARVE Capital and Chemovator.

The faCellitate team under the leadership of co-founder and CEO Simon Widmaier, develops polymeric surface coatings for plastic and glassware enabling multiple applications, such as 3-dimensional cell culture, cell and protein repellent surface environment or chemistry driven material surface modifications. The company´s first product, a 96-well-plate with a highly anti-adhesive surface coating, BIOFLOAT, is ideal for the rapid and reliable production of perfect 3D spheroids which are suitable as in vitro-model in fundamental research and drug development and providing advantages over existing products. These unique properties make it a premium product for 3D cell culture and give scientists a fast and highly reliable tool to drive their research.

The company is currently working on introducing further plate formats, launching new product lines based on its proprietary platform technology, and further increasing the company value by leveraging cross-selling opportunities building on the existing customer base.

The company was formed at Chemovator, the internal venture builder of BASF, and consequently spun-off end of 2021.

Dr. Simon Widmaier, CEO of faCellitate states: “We are stoked by the fact that faCellitate is attracting very experienced investors participating in our journey, sharing our vision and giving us the opportunity to contribute to life science innovation. In addition to players from the VC world, SARSTEDT, a high caliber strategic investor, has joined the list of shareholders. With the money raised we can go full steam ahead and apply our technology platform to develop more high-end products needed in modern biotechnology labs.”

Dr. Klaus Schollmeier, chairman of the board of directors of faCellitate, adds: “With one product already on the market enjoying excellent customer feedback, and several products to be launched within the next 12 to 24 months, faCellitate is well positioned for an excellent future.”

Timo Schretzmair, CFO of SARSTEDT, points out: “faCellitate’s team has already achieved initial success in delivering a unique coating technology with unparalleled proven product performance having the potential to unlock new pathways for research and science around the world – we at SARSTEDT are very enthusiastic to participate in faCellitate’s journey.”

Dr. Angelika Vlachou, Principal at High-Tech Gründerfonds, who accompanies faCellitate as a member of the board, says: “Robust and reliable 3D cell culture systems are increasingly becoming an integral part of biomedical drug and target screening. Together with our co-investors, we look forward to further expanding faCellitate’s product portfolio and pipeline.”