Development of technologies to advance fast and accurate tools for measuring fluorescence in living cells, with emphasis on developing assays optimized for screening in neuronal cells and brain tissue

Project SummaryMontana Molecular is in the business of developing and marketing genetically encoded biosensors for academic research and drug discovery in living cellsOur biosensors provide robust detection of crucial second messenger signalingincluding DAGPIPcAMP and Caon both fluorescence microscopes and the large installed base of automated plate readerswith metrics that match or surpass those of traditional biochemical and luminescence based assaysWe have an established customer basewith overearly adopters in academia and industryOur customers and industry partners have indicated a growing need for assays capable of targeting specific populations of living neurons and forassay readyiPSC derived neuronal lines for use in academia and secondary drug screensGenetically encoded assays for GPCR signalingdeveloped by Montana Molecularfit seamlessly with these needsThey can be used for kinetic measurements in living cellscan be targeted to specific populations of cells in complex tissueand have been independently validated on a wide variety of fluorescence microscopes and automated plate readersTo meet the needs of our customers and to penetrate the growing human iPSC marketwe propose two specific aimsIn Aimwe will engineer a new baculovirus vector that circumvents the payload limits and safety considerations of Lentivirus and AAVIn Aimwe will partner with iPSC developers in both academia and industry to create the first assay ready iPSC derived neurons stably expressing biosensors for the detection of multiple facets of GPCR signaling