Key Investor Signals
Demonstrated early cell-enrichment proof of concept
CELLECT’s preclinical cell-enrichment proof of concept achieved a 50% contaminant level in sample preparation.
Received a C$20,000 grant at DMZ’s innovation summit
CELLECT received a C$20,000 grant at the October 2025 DMZ Black Innovation Summit.
Won university nanotechnology translation support
CT Murphy’s collection-material project won the WIN-Velocity scholarship and received support from Velocity’s Up Start and Cornerstone programmes.
Team
CT Murphy
Co-founder & CEO
- Completed a nanotechnology-engineering BASc at Waterloo in 2023, developing the founding technology as a capstone project.
- Worked in in-vitro testing at Avro Life Science in 2022 and earlier biosensor research at NERv, now FluidAI Medical.
- Co-founded and led Waterloo’s HyDRA nanorobotics research team, combining nano- and biotechnology work.
Ibukun Elebute
Co-founder & COO
- Holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biomedical engineering, providing a technical foundation for health technology.
- Built nearly a decade of health-technology experience spanning research, product management and project management.
- Founded the STEMite Zone science-fair initiative before her Waterloo business studies, supporting underserved young innovators.
Product
CELLECT’s nanomaterial is intended to capture selected cells and preserve DNA within menstrual products such as pads or tampons. The collected material is then transported to a laboratory for established molecular testing.
Capturing material during routine use
A menstrual product incorporates the cell-capture material. The design aims to retain diagnostically useful cells and DNA while reducing unwanted blood-cell material that can interfere with sample preparation and analysis.
Connecting collection with laboratory tests
Users would return a collected sample in labelled packaging. Laboratories could apply existing tests, including HPV assays, after suitable processing.
Developing a laboratory supply pathway
CELLECT is developing its preclinical collection technology for sample-collection and testing laboratories, with exploratory work on other vaginal fluids for non-menstruating users.
Market Overview
CELLECT sits upstream of HPV and cervical-screening laboratories, developing a collection and sample-preparation product. Its potential buyers include diagnostic labs and sample-collection partners that already purchase consumables and run molecular assays.
HPV testing and Pap-test spending provides a downstream commercial market encompassing assays and clinical services. Collection materials serve laboratories within this screening workflow.
Worldwide HPV-testing and Pap-test revenue in 2025.
Forecast annual growth in worldwide HPV-testing and Pap-test revenue from 2026 to 2033.
Hospitals and clinics represented 43.1% of HPV-testing and Pap-test market revenue in 2025.
North America represented 41.2% of worldwide HPV-testing and Pap-test revenue in 2025.
Comparable Outcomes
DNA Genotek
DNA Genotek supplied oral-fluid collection, stabilization and preparation products for molecular diagnostic and research applications. OraSure completed the acquisition in August 2011 for C$50M cash, expanding its sample-collection and nucleic-acid preservation product portfolio.
Cytyc
Cytyc developed women’s-health diagnostic and medical products, including cervical-screening technology, serving established clinical and laboratory workflows. The combination closed in October 2007. The $6.2B consideration covered the broader Cytyc business.
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Sources
This profile was built from public company materials, ecosystem sources, market references, and professional profiles.