GILUPI

GILUPI GmbH, a medical device company headquartered in Potsdam, Germany, was founded in 2006 by Dr. Jens Pfannkuche to develop innovative medical devices for isolating rare cells. The firm operates in the biotechnology and medical technology sectors, with a primary focus on the oncology diagnostics market. Its business model centers on the development and production of the GILUPI CellCollector®, a proprietary technology platform for harvesting rare cells like circulating tumor cells (CTCs) directly from a patient's bloodstream. This in-vivo approach serves as a "liquid biopsy," offering a less invasive alternative to traditional tissue biopsies.

The GILUPI CellCollector® is a CE-marked medical device that functions by inserting a thin, antibody-coated wire into a patient's arm vein for 30 minutes. This wire is engineered to capture specific target cells, such as EpCAM-positive tumor cells, which are prevalent in various cancers. The captured viable cells can then be used for a range of diagnostic procedures, including immunofluorescence staining and molecular analysis, to inform personalized cancer treatment strategies. The technology has been utilized in over 10,000 clinical applications for cancers including lung, prostate, and breast cancer. GILUPI's revenue is generated from the sale of these devices, which enable physicians to monitor disease status and optimize patient therapy.

The company has secured a total of $4.73 million in funding over two rounds, with its most recent being a Series C round in January 2011. Key investors included KfW, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), and Brandenburg Capital. In December 2016, GILUPI was acquired by its largest investor and strategic partner, the Chinese biotech investor Viroad. This acquisition provided GILUPI with access to the Chinese market, where its CellCollector® received regulatory approval from the CFDA in 2017.

Keywords: liquid biopsy, circulating tumor cells, in-vivo diagnostics, oncology diagnostics, medical device, cancer detection, personalized medicine, CTC isolation, CellCollector, EpCAM-positive cells, molecular diagnostics, cancer treatment monitoring, rare cell enrichment, non-invasive biopsy, tumor cell analysis, biotechnology, medical technology, cancer diagnostics, personalized oncology, cell harvesting