Owl biomedical, Inc.

Established in 2011, Owl biomedical produces exclusive cell sorting micro-electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technology for application in cell therapy, cancer diagnostics, and basic research. In February 2013, Owl biomedical joined the Miltenyi Group.

Facts & figures

Focus

Microchip-based cell sorting technology

Location

Santa Barbara, CA, USA

Employee number

> 25

General information

Owl biomedical houses part of the research, development, and manufacturing for the MACSQuant® Tyto® Cell Sorter and associated microchips. This team brings together expertise in flow sorting and microchip engineering to make the next generation in cell sorting a reality.

MACSQuant® Tyto® Cartridge

Expertise and Technology

Bringing together the best talent across various disciplines, Owl biomedical boasts expertise in microfluidic, optical, and mechanical design, system software as well as biological application. We use state-of-the-art microfabrication techniques to produce the cell-sorting chip at the heart of the MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter. It combines mechanically-enabled microchips and a swift micro-valve to perform fluorescence-activated cell sorting, for use in all areas – from basic research to cell therapeutic applications.

Milestones

2009 – First Nanosorter® (precursor to MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter) sorts cells via microchip & fluorescent labeling
2011 – Founding of Owl biomedical
2011 – First Nanosorter installed at Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center
2013 – Owl biomedical acquired by Miltenyi Biotec
2014 – First clinical trial started at MDAnderson with the Nanosorter for Ag⁺ T cell therapy for melanoma
2015 – First patient infused with micro-fluidically sorted cells from the Nanosorter
2016 – MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter approved for clinical trials at MDAnderson for Ag⁺ T cell therapy for melanoma
2016 – First patient infused cells sorted with MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter
2019 – First clinical trial performed in Japan with MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter for Parkinson’s treatment
2019 – First MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter installed in a BSL3 at the NIH
2021 – The 200th MACSQuant Tyto Cell Sorter shipped
2022 – Manufacture of the 1,000,000th microchip