Series A to scale business

Cellex – investment opportunity: €4.7M growth round

Cellex is an Italian innovative SME (PMI innovativa) founded in Rome in 2018, with a satellite office at Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands. We design and manufacture patented bioreactors for cell culture and tissue engineering, for research labs, preclinical testing and bioprocess development.

The problem we solve
Most cell and tissue culture still happens in static flasks and dishes. Static culture is a poor model of living tissue and hard to scale. The usual dynamic alternatives (stirred tanks, impellers, rocking platforms) put mechanical stress on sensitive cells. Researchers and developers need systems that are dynamic, gentle and easy to adopt.

Our technology

• BioAxFlow (patent family WO2024/189527): plug-and-play perfusion bioreactor for dynamic 3D culture on scaffolds. It comes in single-use and autoclavable versions and in several sizes, with automated seeding. It is validated for tissue engineering and 3D cancer models. Peer-reviewed data show up to 5.4x higher cell adhesion than static culture ("A Fluid Dynamics-Model System for Advancing Tissue Engineering and Cancer Research Studies: Biological Assessment of the Innovative BioAxFlow Dynamic Culture Bioreactor", Biomimetics, 2025).

• SUSPENCE (patent family WO2020/095143): bioreactor for suspension culture with no impeller and no moving parts in contact with cells. Cells are kept in suspension by controlled laminar flow, so they grow under low mechanical stress. Target uses include shear-sensitive cells, spheroids, extracellular vesicle production and cellular agriculture.

Where we stand today

• Both products are on the market.

• Patents granted in EU and the United States; further international applications pending.

• Non-exclusive distribution agreement with an international life-science distributor covering 18 countries, plus a growing network of sales agents in Italy.

• Partner in EU and national funded research projects (Horizon Europe, MSCA Staff Exchanges, Eurostars, regional ERDF) on bone regeneration, marine biotechnology, bioprinting and process automation.

• Engineering-led team: our CEO has a long publication record in bioreactor design, oxygen transport and flow characterisation.

Market drivers

• Regulators are pushing toward New Approach Methodologies, i.e. human-relevant in vitro models that reduce animal testing.

• Cell and gene therapies, organoids and 3D models are moving from academic labs to process development.

• Extracellular vesicles and cellular agriculture are new application fields where low-stress culture matters.

Use of funds
The €4.7M round will finance:

• scaling manufacturing and the single-use product range;

• a structured validation programme with academic partners across key cell types, to build application data for commercial use;

• product development in process control and automation;

• international sales and distribution, in Europe and in selected markets outside it;

• key hires in biology, application support and sales.

What we are looking for

• A lead investor and co-investors for the round: life-science and deep-tech VCs, corporate investors and family offices.

• Business angels with experience in life-science tools, medtech or bioprocessing, who can bring capital as well as expertise and networks.

• Strategic partners interested in co-development or distribution.

We are based in Rome and available to meet during the event. Financial details and the investor deck are available on request under NDA.