Montana Molecular

What Montana Molecular does

Montana Molecular is a privately held biosciences reagent company headquartered in Bozeman, Montana, that develops and commercializes fluorescent biosensors for live-cell drug discovery and basic research. Its core technology is a portfolio of genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensors packaged in the company's proprietary BacMam BSL-1 viral vector system, which enables consistent, titratable gene delivery to a broad range of mammalian cell types including primary cultures and iPSC-derived cells. The product catalog spans over 170 SKUs covering second messenger detection (cADDis cAMP, GENIe cGMP, GECO calcium, DAG, PIP2), GPCR pathway interrogation (Borealis arrestin recruitment assays and 52+ unmodified human GPCRs in BacMam), sub-cellular targeted sensor variants (cilia, nucleus, mitochondria, membrane microdomains via AKAP and other targeting motifs), cell stress assays, optogenetic tools (bPAC, ion channels), live-cell organelle paints, and SARS-CoV-2 research reagents.

The business operates a hybrid go-to-market combining direct e-commerce at montanamolecular.com (kits priced $895-$2,995), quote-based enterprise sales for custom BacMam preparations and fee-for-service compound profiling, and channel distribution through regional partners including tubebio and Biozol (Europe), Funakoshi (Japan), Kim & Friends (South Korea), and AmyJet Scientific (China/Hong Kong/Taiwan). Revenue is generated primarily through one-time catalog sales of kits, receptor constructs, and optogenetic tools (with $995 standardized pricing for GPCRs and optogenetics components), supplemented by service revenue from custom virus production and assay services billed on multi-year contracts.

The company serves pharmaceutical and biotechnology drug-discovery groups focused on GPCR targets alongside academic research institutions across cell signaling, neuroscience, diabetes, and stem cell biology. Named customers include the University of Miami School of Medicine, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Harvard University/Q-State Biosciences, and the Oxford Centre for Diabetes. Historical capital formation has relied on federal non-dilutive funding through SBIR/NIH/NSF mechanisms. Leadership comprises CEO Anne Marie Quinn and Founder/Director of R&D Thom Hughes.

Name

Montana Molecular

Legal name

Montana Molecular

Website

https://montanamolecular.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Montana Molecular is a privately held Bozeman, Montana-based biosciences reagent company that develops genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensors delivered via its proprietary BacMam viral vector system for GPCR drug discovery and academic live-cell research customers worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biosensor Assay Reagents

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Cell-Based & Potency Assays (Bioassays) (HLAGADAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Viral Vector Manufacturing Services (AAV, lentiviral, adenoviral) (HLAAAKAD)

Keywords

• Fluorescent biosensor assays
• BacMam viral vectors
• GPCR signaling reagents
• Live cell imaging kits
• Cell signaling biosensors

Headquarters

HQ city

Bozeman

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Assay Kit Sales: Sale of fluorescent biosensor assay kits including cADDis cAMP, GECO calcium, DAG, PIP2, GENIe cGMP, and Borealis arrestin assays. Products range from standard assay kits to targeted and specialized versions. Pricing varies from $895 to $2,995 per kit depending on complexity and configuration.
2. GPCR Receptor Kits: Sale of human GPCRs packaged in BacMam virus for expression in mammalian cells. Includes receptors for dopamine, muscarinic, adenosine, adrenergic, opioid, cannabinoid, serotonin, and other receptor families. Pricing at $995 per receptor kit.
3. Live Cell Painting Products: Sale of fluorescent protein-based organelle labels including MitoPaint, NLSPaint, Lamp2Paint, GiantinPaint, TauPaint, BetaActinPaint, and AlphaTubulinPaint for visualization of subcellular structures.
4. Optogenetic Tools: Sale of optogenetics toolkit components including bPAC enzyme, cAMP-gated ion channel, Kir 2.1 channel, and voltage-gated sodium channel BacMam products at $995 each.
5. Custom BacMam Services: Custom BacMam preparation services including alternative species/splice variants, fluorescent tags, cell-specific promoters, and Cre-inducible systems. Also includes assay optimization and compound profiling services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Montana Molecular develops and sells genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensors packaged in its proprietary BacMam BSL-1 viral vector system for real-time kinetic measurement of cell signaling molecules (cAMP, cGMP, calcium, DAG, PIP2, arrestin, cell stress) in living mammalian cells. Its catalog of more than 170 products is used by pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic researchers for drug discovery, GPCR compound profiling, and basic cell signaling research. The company also provides custom BacMam preparation and fee-for-service GPCR assay/compound profiling services.

Product overview

Montana Molecular is a biosciences reagent company offering a broad portfolio of fluorescent biosensor assay kits and BacMam viral vector tools for live cell discovery and drug discovery research. The portfolio is organized around a core platform of genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensor assays — including cADDis cAMP, Borealis Arrestin, GECO Calcium, DAG, PIP2, GENIe cGMP, and Cell Stress assays — all delivered via the BacMam BSL-1 viral vector system for robust, titratable expression in virtually any mammalian cell type. Supporting the core assays are complementary product lines: Live Cell Paints (organelle labels including MitoPaint, NLSPaint, Lamp2Paint, GiantinPaint, TauPaint, BetaActinPaint, AlphaTubulinPaint, EndoPaint, OmegaPaint), GPCRs in BacMam (40+ human GPCRs with optional fluorescent tags), RAMPs, GPCR Kinases (GRK2/3/5), fluorescent protein controls, Cre recombinase, and the Optogenetic Toolkit (bPAC, ion channels). The company also offers two service lines: Assay Services for outsourced compound profiling and kinetic characterization, and Custom BacMam Gene Delivery Services for custom virus preparation including AAV and Lentiviral vectors. SARS-CoV-2 research reagents round out the portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Borealis: Best-in-class fluorescent biosensor for arrestin recruitment used in GPCR signaling studies
• cADDis
• GENIe
• GECO
• DAG
• Live Cell Paints
• 3CLglow
• Big Sky BacMam

Products and services

• cADDis cAMP Assays Genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensor assay for real-time detection of cyclic AMP (cAMP) signaling via Gs or Gi pathways in living cells, delivered via BacMam viral vector. Available in Green Up, Green Down, Green Gi, and Red Up variants with pricing from $895 to $2,995. Used by GPCR researchers to measure cAMP dynamics over minutes to hours.
• Targeted cADDis cAMP Assays Sub-cellular targeted versions of the cADDis cAMP sensor for localized cAMP signaling measurements in specific compartments including cilia, nucleus, membrane microdomains (fMP, fS15), and AKAP-targeted regions (AKAP18a, AKAP18b, AKAP1, AKAP79, AKAP12, smAKAP); includes ratiometric variants. Priced at $995.
• Borealis Arrestin Assays Best-in-class fluorescent biosensor for real-time measurement of arrestin recruitment to GPCRs in living cells, using unmodified receptors. 21 receptor-optimized kits are available off-the-shelf including AT1R, V2R, GLP-1R, MOR, β2AR, D1R, OTR, 5-HT2AR, KOR, PAR2, DOR, LPA1R, PTH1R, 5-HT2CR, GCGR, MC3R, MC4R, CCR5, ACKR3, PAR1, and APJ; supports agonist-bias detection.
• GECO Calcium Assays Real-time kinetic fluorescent calcium (Ca2+) biosensor available in red (R-GECO) and green (G-GECO) versions with a TRPM1-targeted lysosomal variant (G-GECO). Pricing $895-$2,995. Used for calcium signaling research in plate-reader or imaging formats and compatible with multiplexing.
• DAG (Diacylglycerol) Assays Genetically-encoded fluorescent biosensor for real-time detection of diacylglycerol (DAG) signaling via Gq-coupled GPCRs, available in green (up/down) and red (up/down) versions with a membrane-targeted variant at $1,795. Standard configurations $895-$2,995.
• PIP2 Assays Bright fluorescent biosensor assay for real-time kinetic detection of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) hydrolysis in Gq-coupled GPCR signaling, available in green and red versions. Pricing $895-$2,995.
• GENIe cGMP Assays Genetically-encoded fluorescent cGMP assay for real-time detection of cyclic GMP signaling, study of cGMP production, PDE inhibition, and PDE inhibitor screening, packaged in BacMam. Priced at $1,795. Can be paired with R-cADDis to compare cGMP and cAMP concentrations in living cells.
• Cell Stress Assays Fluorescent biosensor assays for detecting cell stress responses including IRE1-XBP1 pathway sensors and ratiometric cell stress sensors, for studying stress-related cellular mechanisms including neurodegeneration research.
• Live Cell Paints Fluorescent proteins targeted to subcellular organelles and structures including MitoPaint (mitochondria), NLSPaint/H2BPaint (nucleus), Lamp2Paint (lysosome), GiantinPaint (Golgi), TauPaint (cytoskeleton/Tau), BetaActinPaint (F-actin), AlphaTubulinPaint (tubulin), EndoPaint (endosome), and OmegaPaint (omegasome) for live cell morphological visualization and phenotypic screening.
• GPCRs in BacMam Catalog of unmodified human GPCRs (40+ receptors including D1/D2/D3 Dopamine, M1/M2/M3 Muscarinic, GLP-1R, β2AR, 5-HT2A, 5-HT2C, opioid receptors, cannabinoid receptors, and more) packaged in BacMam virus for expression in mammalian cells, available with optional Green/Red fluorescent tags and cell-specific promoters. Priced at $995 per receptor.
• Reagents for SARS-CoV-2 Research Assay reagents for SARS-CoV-2 research including fluorescent ACE2, fluorescent pseudo SARS-CoV-2 reporters, and 3CL protease biosensors (3CLglow assays) for screening virus blockers and protease inhibitors.
• Optogenetic Toolkit Optogenetics tools for optically controlling and measuring cell signaling: bPAC enzyme (blue light-activated adenylyl cyclase for cAMP production), cAMP-gated ion channel, Kir 2.1 channel, and voltage-gated sodium channel, all packaged in BacMam for expression in mammalian cells. Priced at $995 each.
• Assay Services Fee-for-service GPCR signaling assays including compound profiling, assay optimization, and kinetic characterization of signaling dynamics performed by Montana Molecular scientists using their biosensor platform. Pricing available by quote.
• Custom BacMam Gene Delivery Services Custom BacMam virus preparation services including alternative species/splice variants of GPCRs, constitutively expressed fluorescent proteins or genetic tags, cell-specific promoters, Cre-inducible systems, and custom vector design. Purified BacMam, AAV, and Lentiviral vectors available by request. Pricing by quote.

Quantifiable outcome

• Sub-second read frequency and total read times of over five hours for kinetic measurements
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• tubebiocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributortubebio is a distribution partner for Montana Molecular in Europe, distributing biosensor assay kits and related products to European research institutions and pharmaceutical companies.
• BiozolcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBiozol serves as a distribution partner for Montana Molecular products in the European market, enabling local availability of fluorescent biosensors and assay kits.
• FunakoshicoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFunakoshi is a Japanese distributor for Montana Molecular products, providing access to biosensor technologies for Japanese researchers and pharmaceutical companies.
• Kim & FriendscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKim & Friends distributes Montana Molecular products in South Korea, supporting the Korean research community with access to live cell biosensor assays.
• AmyJet Scientific InccoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAmyJet Scientific Inc serves as the distribution partner for Montana Molecular products in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, enabling broad market access in the Asia-Pacific region.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• BPS Bioscience: BPS Bioscience sells cell-based assay kits, recombinant GPCRs and enzyme products that overlap directly with Montana Molecular's GPCR BacMam and signaling assay portfolio.
• Revvity (formerly PerkinElmer / Cisbio): Revvity's Cisbio HTRF platform provides cAMP and IP-One cell signaling assays directly comparable to cADDis and DAG/PIP2 kits from Montana Molecular.
• Eurofins DiscoverX: Eurofins DiscoverX offers PathHunter β-arrestin and other cell-based GPCR signaling assays, directly overlapping Montana Molecular's Borealis arrestin and GPCR product lines for pharma and academic drug discovery.
• Promega: Promega's GloSensor cAMP biosensor and GPCR cell-based assay kits compete head-to-head with cADDis cAMP assays; both companies sell into pharma screening and academic signaling labs.
• Molecular Devices: Molecular Devices supplies FLIPR and other kinetic plate readers and GPCR calcium mobilization assays that overlap with Montana Molecular's GECO calcium and kinetic GPCR offerings.
• Cayman Chemical: Cayman Chemical distributes assay kits and reagents for cell signaling, cAMP/GPCR pharmacology, and related research areas that compete with Montana Molecular's catalog in academic and pharma labs.

Broad incumbents

• Abcam: Abcam offers a broad portfolio of assay kits, antibodies and reagents for cell signaling research, overlapping with Montana Molecular's biosensor catalog at the reagent level across many of the same customers.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher offers cell-based GPCR assays, fluorescence plate readers and life-science reagents that compete with Montana Molecular through bundled instrument-plus-assay offerings to large pharma accounts.
• Bio-Techne (R&D Systems / Tocris): Bio-Techne provides GPCR reagents, cell signaling kits and small molecules through R&D Systems and Tocris that compete broadly with Montana Molecular's research tools in academic and pharma labs.

Others

• Charles River Laboratories: Charles River offers cell-based assay services and drug discovery CRO capabilities that overlap with Montana Molecular's fee-for-service assay and custom BacMam work, though primarily as a CRO rather than reagent vendor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/livecellassays
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCka636_v7JwgAacEgcfsNdA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/4738848

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Montana Molecular