Country: Hong Kong

Allegrow Biotech started as a spinoff start-up from the biomaterials laboratory at the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, specialising in modulating and manipulating immune cells using biomaterial-based approaches. We are combining our biomaterials, drug delivery and immunomodulation know-how to address various bottlenecks in immune cell research and therapeutic manufacturing. Our AimGel technology is a hydrogel-based artificial cell platform that is synthetic and scalable, and could mimic various cell types. AimGel artificial cells activate and expand immune cells with unprecedented signal fidelity, bypassing current limitations in both synthetic and cell-based solutions. At the heart of our AimGel technology is our proprietary lipid coating that recreates the fluidity of cell membranes, allowing us to mimic natural cell-cell interactions. This technological leap means AimGel performs better in both quality and quantity, producing more robust cells (higher viability, more memory subtypes and less exhaustion) in a shorter time frame. This biomimicry also enables the expansion of underserved cell types such as natural killer cells and regulatory T cells, paving the way for bleeding edge cell therapies to get from the benchside to the bedside. Being hydrogel-based, AimGel artificial cells are programmed to degrade at desired timepoints, negating the need for complex removal steps, integrating seamlessly into existing workflows. The mission is to leverage our AimGel platform to enable & accelerate cell therapy R&D, clinical translation and ultimately, production.