Mimotype engineers optically active proteins (OAPs) that capture and convert light, then scales their production and embeds them into soft‑matter composites such as hydrogels, thin films, nanoparticles, and fibers. Their flagship red‑emitting OAP, mScarlet3, is offered through an access program as ready‑to‑use bio‑ink, enabling materials scientists and tissue‑engineers to create living, light‑responsive scaffolds, photonic devices, and bio‑hybrid systems without custom protein development.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Researchers and engineers lack readily available, scalable biologically derived light‑responsive components that can be integrated into soft‑matter and tissue‑engineering materials, limiting the development of photonic, regenerative and bio‑hybrid applications.
Solution
Mimotype produces optically active proteins (OAPs) that capture and convert light, offering a biological alternative to conventional photonic materials. Using a computational design pipeline that combines comparative genomics, inverse folding, molecular dynamics and time‑dependent density functional theory, they engineer protein variants with tailored optical and functional properties. The proteins are expressed in bioreactors with growth‑coupled selection assays, enabling rapid, high‑purity production at scale. Mimotype then embeds the OAPs into soft composites such as hydrogels, thin films, nanoparticles and fibers, creating living, light‑responsive materials that can be used for 4D tissue scaffolds, magneto‑responsive fluorescence, spectral conversion and quantum‑grade single‑photon emission. Their flagship red‑emitting OAP, mScarlet3, is supplied through an access program that provides researchers with ready‑to‑use bio‑ink formulations for seamless integration into existing material‑fabrication workflows.
Target Audience
Primary customers are materials scientists, photonics researchers, soft‑matter engineers, biosensing developers, and tissue‑engineering groups seeking biologically derived, light‑responsive components for advanced scaffolds and bio‑hybrid devices.
Features
- Computational protein design toolkit incorporating genomics, inverse folding, MD simulations and TD‑DFT for precise optical property engineering
- Scalable expression platform that moves from shake‑flask screening to bioreactor‑grade production with high purity and yield
- Standardized embedding protocols for incorporation of OAPs into hydrogels, thin films, nanoparticles and fibers
- Red‑emitting flagship OAP (mScarlet3) with magneto‑responsive fluorescence and customizable concentration in bio‑ink cartridges
- Access program delivering ready‑to‑use OAP formulations (protein, cross‑linker, sterile water, bio‑ink cartridge) for material scientists and tissue engineers
- Compatibility with existing soft‑matter manufacturing infrastructure and 3D‑printing/nozzle systems