Immunity's Gatekeepers Unlocked: Myllia's VISTA Shatters Research Barriers!
- Myllia Biotechnology has launched VISTA, the first-ever platform for genome-wide CRISPR screens in primary human macrophages and dendritic cells.
- This breakthrough overcomes a major hurdle in studying key innate immune cells, crucial for fighting diseases like cancer and autoimmunity.
- The VISTA platform is poised to revolutionize immunology and accelerate the discovery of next-generation drug targets.
Vienna, Austria – June 6, 2025 – For years, the inner workings of macrophages and dendritic cells—the vigilant sentinels of our innate immune system—have remained shrouded in complexity. These cells are pivotal in orchestrating our body's defense against autoimmunity, inflammation, cancer, and infectious disease, yet their sensitive, short-lived nature made them notoriously difficult to study using powerful gene-editing tools2, 6. Until now.
Myllia Biotechnology, a Vienna-based pioneer founded in 2018 by Thomas Moser (CEO) and Dr. Tilmann Buerckstuemmer (CSO)5, 8, today announced a seismic shift in immunological research: the launch of VISTA. This revolutionary platform is the world's first to enable genome-wide CRISPR screens in these primary human cells, effectively unlocking a previously inaccessible realm of discovery.
"Macrophages and dendritic cells are exceptionally challenging to tackle," stated Dr. Buerckstuemmer. "Overcoming these obstacles has required years of iterative development... With VISTA, we’ve created a robust, scalable system that finally unlocks high-content functional screening." This innovation, recognized by accolades such as the GHP Global Excellence Award for Most Innovative BioTech Company in Austria 20237, combines CRISPR with single-cell RNA sequencing to dissect gene function at an unprecedented scale8.
The development of VISTA, validated through proof-of-concept screens supported by Ultima Genomics' sequencing prowess, heralds a new dawn. "We believe this technology will catalyze the next wave of immunology-driven drug discovery," Dr. Buerckstuemmer added, transforming these challenging cells into powerful models for therapeutic exploration2.
Myllia Biotechnology is now seeking strategic partners to deploy VISTA across various disease areas, aiming to unearth novel drug targets and expand its screening capabilities to other immune cell types7. The era of deciphering immunity's deepest secrets has begun.
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