COMPANY OVERVIEW
Nortis, based in Seattle, Washington, develops microfluidic organ-on-chip platforms specializing in kidney and vascular models. Spun out from the University of Washington, the company's ParVivo technology creates perfused tubular structures that recapitulate renal and vascular physiology for drug nephrotoxicity assessment and vascular biology research.
TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM
- ParVivo Kidney: Proximal tubule-on-chip with polarized epithelium and active transport
- ParVivo Vascular: Endothelialized microchannels for vascular permeability studies
- Tubular Architecture: 3D lumen structure with physiological flow conditions
- Primary Cells: Compatible with primary human RPTEC and endothelial cells
- Multi-Day Culture: Stable barrier function maintained for weeks
KEY APPLICATIONS
- Drug-induced nephrotoxicity screening with biomarker quantification
- Renal transporter phenotyping (OAT1, OAT3, OCT2, P-gp)
- Vascular permeability and inflammation assessment
- Acute kidney injury (AKI) disease modeling
- Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) cyst formation studies
PHARMA PARTNERSHIPS
Nortis partners with pharmaceutical companies for nephrotoxicity screening during lead optimization, addressing the critical need for better predictive models—nephrotoxicity causes 20% of late-stage drug failures. Their platforms detect tubular damage earlier and more sensitively than traditional 2D assays.