# CellFE

> CellFE is an Alameda, California biotechnology company building microfluidics-based, non-viral cell-engineering instruments and consumables. Its Ryva mechanoporation platform squeezes cells through microfluidic channels to transiently open their membranes and deliver gene-editing payloads (mRNA, CRISPR-RNP, DNA vectors) in under 10 milliseconds, aiming to preserve cell health and viability where viral vectors and electroporation fall short. The goal is to make lifesaving cell therapies such as CAR-T faster, cheaper, and more scalable to manufacture.

- **Founded:** 2018
- **Headquarters:** Alameda, California, United States
- **Founders:** Alla Zamarayeva (Co-founder & CEO), Todd Sulchek (Co-founder & CSO), Alexander Alexeev (Co-founder)
- **Team size:** ~20 employees (estimate)
- **Products:** Ryva Mechanoporation System, Ryva PUPs (Processing Units), High Volume Cyva System, T-Rest Resting T Cell Kit
- **Notable:** Unveiled research-scale microfluidic cell-engineering platform at BIO 2022., Commercially launched its microfluidic cellular engineering platform at ASGCT 2023., Closed a $22M Series A led by Merck KGaA's M Ventures in September 2023.

## Products & services

- **Ryva Mechanoporation System** — Benchtop microfluidic instrument that fits in a biosafety cabinet and uses rapid cell compression and re-expansion to transiently open membranes and deliver payloads (mRNA, CRISPR-RNP, DNA) into cells in under 10 milliseconds. Processes up to 8 samples per run with touchscreen control and run tracking.
- **Ryva PUPs (Processing Units)** — Single-use microfluidic consumable chips. The Optimizer PUP offers variable ridge-gap sizes for protocol tuning; the Standard PUP uses a uniform chip for established workflows. Each processes up to ~2 million cells.
- **High Volume Cyva System** — Clinical and manufacturing-scale platform for larger-volume, cGMP-oriented cell engineering workflows.
- **T-Rest Resting T Cell Kit** — First-in-class transfection media product enabling gene editing of resting (non-activated) T cells, reporting over 80% CRISPR-RNP transfection efficiency with high viability while preserving stemness for allogeneic, off-the-shelf approaches.

## Achievements

- Unveiled research-scale microfluidic cell-engineering platform at BIO 2022.
- Commercially launched its microfluidic cellular engineering platform at ASGCT 2023.
- Closed a $22M Series A led by Merck KGaA's M Ventures in September 2023.
- Launched the first-in-class T-Rest kit for editing resting T cells in 2024.
- Signed three industry/academic partnerships (Syenex, DKFZ/TcellTech, Made Scientific) in 2025.

## Latest updates

- **2025-05** — Announced strategic collaboration with CDMO Made Scientific to generate pilot data on the High Volume Cyva System.
- **2025-04** — Partnered with DKFZ's Harbottle Lab and TcellTech to advance non-viral DNA vector cell engineering; results presented at ASGCT 2025.
- **2025-01** — Announced hybrid gene-editing workflow collaboration with Syenex during JPM Healthcare Conference week.
- **2024-01** — Launched the first-in-class T-Rest kit for editing resting T cells for CAR-T therapy.

## Links

- Website: https://cellfebiotech.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cellfe-biotech
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/cellfebiotech

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/cellfe
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-15