Slingshot Biosciences, a company developing precision-engineered cell mimic controls, entered a strategic collaboration with Cellares, an integrated development and manufacturing organization. The partnership combines Slingshot’s TruCytes Biomarker controls into Cellares’ Cell Q, a fully automated quality-control (QC) testing platform purpose-built to scale with the Cell Shuttle, a fully automated manufacturing platform.

TruCytes biomarker controls represent a major advance in standardized reference materials for flow cytometry. They replicate the optical and biochemical properties of real cells without donor-to-donor variability, enhancing precision and consistency. This helps to lower QC failure rates, improve comparability, and reduce operating costs. By integrating TruCytes directly into its automated QC architecture, Cellares aims to strengthen its control of the entire manufacturing ecosystem, from in-process analytics to final release.


Fabian Gerlinghaus, CEO and Co-Founder of Cellares, said, “Integrating TruCytes controls into our Cell Q platform extends the same level of automation, reliability, and traceability that define the Cell Shuttle. It reduces analytical failure rates and enables continuous QC that moves in step with our 24/7 manufacturing network. For our pharma and biotech partners, that means faster, more predictable lot release and the confidence to scale production globally with consistent results.”

“Flow cytometry technologies have become increasingly complex, demanding controls that deliver both accuracy and efficiency,” said Glenn Bilawsky, Chief Executive Officer at Slingshot Biosciences. “TruCytes are the first to replicate phenotype and function, enabling researchers and manufacturers to maintain precise calibration across instruments, operators, and sites. Cellares’ integration of TruCytes within its Cell Q system demonstrates how combining our cell mimic controls with fully automated QC can deliver continuous, reliable testing at industrial scale.