Atelerix was spun out of Newcastle University (UK) in June 2017 by the three co-founders, Professor Che Connon, Dr Steve Swioklo and Dr Mick McLean. The company is commercializing the gel encapsulation approach in two main sectors:
- Cell models used for drug discovery and testing
- Cells used as therapies in their own right
The business headquarters are in Cambridge (UK) on the prestigious Babraham Research Campus, with R&D and Operations run from the new, purpose-built facility in the beautiful Newcastle Biosphere.
What’s in a name?
How do you name a new business? After the founders perhaps – ‘CheSteMic’? Or something that says what you do – ‘BioGelloCellProtect’ maybe?
Being the geeks that we are, and thinking about what our technology does, we took inspiration from the practices of hedgehogs (Genus name: Atelerix) – specifically, the African four-toed pygmy hedgehog that hibernates when the temperature drops below about 20°C.
Since our products allow cells to do this too, we thought that was a cool name for the company and Atelerix was born!
