RNAConnect, a pioneering life science reagent company, has formally launched. It promises groundbreaking solutions for exploring the real-world diversity of RNA sequence and structure.
RNAConnect was founded by innovators in the RNA community, for innovators in the RNA community. It is anchored by the belief that better enzymatic tools for visualizing and manipulating RNA allow the entire scientific community to discover, create, and innovate in ways previously not possible.
Founded by Anna Marie Pyle, PhD, Yale University Sterling Professor of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology; Professor of Chemistry and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, RNAConnect exclusively licensed pioneering enzymatic technology from Yale. This technology, developed in her lab, reveals the full spectrum of RNA processing and chemical modification isoforms of transcripts in cellular mixtures, with unparalleled detection of long, highly structured RNAs present at low abundance. Co-founders of the company include a team of industry and academic experts including:
- Ryan Muldoon, RNAConnect’s CEO, a life science entrepreneur who was previously the Co-founder and CEO of PrEP Biopharm, Ltd.
- Li-Tao Guo, PhD, lead enzymatic researcher for the Pyle Lab at Yale University
- Brent Graveley, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences at the University of Connecticut & Director of the UConn Institute for Systems Genomics
- Emmanuel Saliba, PhD, Professor University of Würzburg and Group Leader of the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research
RNAConnect was started with the assistance of the venture firm, Connecticut Innovations, and was recently awarded an NIH SBIR grant to further optimize its groundbreaking reverse transcriptase products. In addition, the company is supported by a distinguished scientific advisory board, including: Anna Marie Pyle, PhD, and Li-Tao Guo, PhD, Brent Graveley, PhD, Emmanuel Saliba, PhD; Sigrid Nachtergaele, PhD, Asst. Professor, of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology at Yale; ; Eric Van Nostrand, PhD, Asst. Professor at the Baylor College of Medicine and the Co-founder of Eclipse Bioinnovations, a specialized genomics company; Anthony Mustoe, PhD, Asst. Professor of Biochemistry at the Baylor College of Medicine; Spencer Glantz, PhD, Co-founder and Head of R&D at Detect, Inc, a commercial stage diagnostic test manufacturer.
In the coming days, RNAConnect will announce the launch its first RNA analysis products focused on an optimized version of the ground-breaking UltraMarathon Reverse Transcriptase.
“The launch of RNAConnect marks a significant milestone in the scientific reagent industry, introducing innovative solutions that will reshape how researchers and scientists explore and investigate RNA. Conventional RNA sequencing technologies are built on platforms that use legacy enzymes discovered decades ago. These are not ideal for modern applications that require an accurate reflection of transcriptomic diversity under real-world conditions. At RNAConnect, we are dedicated to providing better enzymatic tools to unlock the full potential of RNA research.” says Ryan Muldoon, Co-Founder and CEO, RNAConnect.