Lucerna
Lucerna Technologies is an early-stage biotech tools company that develops and sells fluorescent RNA aptamer reagents (the Spinach™ platform) and custom RNA sensor development services to academic RNA researchers and pharmaceutical/biotech drug discovery programs worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Lucerna does
Lucerna, Inc. (operating as Lucerna Technologies) is an early-stage biotechnology tools company founded in 2010 by Cornell University and Weill Cornell Medical College scientists — Karen Wu, Samie R. Jaffrey, and Jeremy S. Paige — and headquartered at the Downstate Biotechnology Center in Brooklyn, New York. Operating with a team of 1–10 employees, Lucerna's core technology is the Spinach™ RNA aptamer platform: a family of genetically encodable RNA tags (Spinach, Spinach2, Broccoli, Corn, Red Broccoli, Radish, Squash) that activate cell-permeable fluorogenic dyes (DFHBI, DFHBI-1T, BI, DFHO, OBI) to enable live-cell RNA imaging and detection without the constraints of fixed-cell methods such as FISH or perturbative systems like MS2. Lucerna holds exclusive worldwide rights to the platform via an inbound license from Cornell University.
The company's commercial offering comprises two lines. First, a catalog of five proprietary fluorophores priced from $49.99 to $299.99 per unit (1–10 mg sizes), enabling green, yellow, orange, and red emission channels with documented stability (>2 years at -20°C) and HPLC purity >98%. Second, a custom RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development service — a high-throughput drug screening platform that uses Spinach-based sensors to detect endogenous splice isoforms in 96- or 384-well formats, capable of detecting splicing changes as small as 10%, sold on a quote-based professional services engagement model. Featured fluorophore specifications include validated excitation/emission spectra and binding affinities, with single-molecule imaging and multiplexing enabled by OBI and BI.
Lucerna generates revenue via three streams: (i) one-time catalog reagent sales direct through its e-commerce site (lucernatechnologies.com) and through a network of eight-plus global distributors — VWR, Tocris, MedChemExpress, Funakoshi, QFBio, Amerigoscientific, Annoron, Jenabioscience, and Lookchem — with FedEx fulfillment worldwide; (ii) professional services revenue from custom sensor collaborations, most notably a completed 2017 R&D project with an unnamed top-5 pharmaceutical company on novel splicing-modulator hits; and (iii) non-dilutive SBIR grant funding from NIH institutes, including a $1.5M NCI Phase II contract for circular RNA detection, a $225K NIAID Phase I grant for an antiviral RdRP assay targeting dengue/Zika/Ebola, and an earlier $149,733 NSF award. The company has received SLAS2020 Innovation AveNEW and Ignite Award recognition, and participated in RNA Society meetings and the RNA-Targeted Drug Discovery Summit for lead generation.
Lucerna firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lucerna
- Legal name
- Lucerna, Inc.
- Website
- https://lucernatechnologies.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Lucerna Technologies is an early-stage biotech tools company that develops and sells fluorescent RNA aptamer reagents (the Spinach™ platform) and custom RNA sensor development services to academic RNA researchers and pharmaceutical/biotech drug discovery programs worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lucerna industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Biotech Research Reagents (RNA Imaging Tools)
- NAICS
- Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Reagents, Chemicals & Assay Kits (Buffers, Antibodies, ELISA, Enzymes) (HLAGAIAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- High-Throughput Screening & Assay Platforms (HTS/HCS, phenotypic screening) (HLAAAIAA), RNA Therapeutics Platforms & Design (sequence design, target ID/validation, AI/bioinformatics) (HLAAADAG)
Keywords
Where Lucerna is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Lucerna business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Research Reagents Sales: Sale of fluorophores (DFHBI, DFHBI-1T, BI, DFHO, OBI) and RNA sensors to academic and pharmaceutical researchers. One-time product purchases with prices ranging from $49.99 to $299.99 per unit.
- Custom Sensor Development Services: Custom RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development service with quote-based pricing for pharmaceutical and biotech company drug discovery projects.
- SBIR Grant Funding: Non-dilutive funding from NIH institutes including National Cancer Institute ($1.5M Phase II) and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases ($225K Phase I).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | BI Fluorophore - 1mg |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | DFHBI Fluorophore - 1/5/10mg |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | DFHBI-1T Fluorophore - 1/5/10mg |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | DFHO Fluorophore - 1mg |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | OBI Fluorophore - 1mg |
| Other | Multi-year contract | RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Lucerna product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lucerna develops, manufactures, and sells proprietary fluorescent RNA imaging reagents and custom RNA sensor development services built on the Spinach aptamer technology licensed from Cornell/Weill Cornell. Its offerings comprise five fluorophore products (DFHBI, DFHBI-1T, BI, DFHO, OBI) sold in 1/5/10 mg units, complemented by a custom RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development service for high-throughput drug discovery of RNA splice modulators in 96-/384-well formats.
Product overview
Lucerna offers a suite of RNA-focused research reagents centered around the Spinach aptamer technology platform. The product portfolio includes five fluorophores (DFHBI, DFHBI-1T, BI, DFHO, and OBI) which are small molecule dyes that fluoresce when bound to their cognate RNA aptamers in the Spinach family (Spinach, Spinach2, Broccoli, Corn, Red Broccoli). These fluorophores are complemented by custom RNA sensor development services, most notably the RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development platform for high-throughput drug discovery of RNA splice modulators. The fluorophores are sold in various sizes with documented spectral properties, and the sensor service is available as a custom development offering.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Spinach™: A family of light-up RNA aptamers designed to activate a series of fluorogenic dyes for RNA imaging and detection in living cells.
Products and services
- DFHBI Fluorophore A small-molecule dye that mimics the GFP chromophore and becomes highly fluorescent upon binding to the Spinach2 aptamer, enabling live-cell visualization of RNA localization and movements under the microscope. Sold to academic and pharmaceutical researchers in 1/5/10 mg sizes.
- DFHBI-1T Fluorophore A DFHBI derivative offering enhanced brightness and photostability that binds both Spinach and Broccoli aptamers, sold to researchers for improved RNA imaging performance. Available in 1/5/10 mg sizes.
- BI (DFHBI-BI) Fluorophore The first photostable green fluorophore developed through structure-guided design to bind Broccoli with high affinity, enabling single-molecule RNA imaging in live cells for advanced RNA biology research.
- DFHO Fluorophore A fluorophore that binds Corn to emit yellow fluorescence (excitation 505 nm, emission 545 nm) and Red Broccoli or Squash to emit orange fluorescence, enabling multi-color multiplexed RNA imaging.
- OBI Fluorophore A 'plug-and-play' fluorophore that binds either Broccoli (green) or Red Broccoli (red) to emit red fluorescence, developed by the Jaffrey lab with enhanced stability for improved red-channel RNA imaging (excitation 530-541 nm, emission 580-590 nm).
- RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development Custom fluorescent sensor development service for pharmaceutical and biotech drug discovery teams seeking high-throughput screens of RNA splice modulators, with recognition modules designed for specific endogenous spliced RNA targets; available in 96- or 384-well plate formats.
Quantifiable outcome
- Detect splicing changes as small as 10%
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Lucerna
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Lucerna technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature9 records
Lucerna partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)core$225K SBIR Phase I grant for developing cell-based viral polymerase assay targeting RNA viruses including Dengue, Zika, and Ebola.
- Top 5 Pharmaceutical Company (unnamed)minorCompleted R&D project in 2017 to develop custom splicing assay for identifying novel splice modulating hits in drug discovery.
- Cornell UniversitycoreExclusive worldwide licensing agreement for Spinach technology developed by Cornell scientists. Lucerna was launched in 2010 by scientists who developed the Spinach technology at Cornell/Weill Cornell.
- Jaffrey Lab (Weill Cornell Medicine)coreFounded by Jaffrey lab scientists; Dr. Samie Jaffrey serves as Scientific Advisor and Co-Founder. Lab pioneered mRNA epitranscriptomics and enabling technologies for RNA biology research.
- National Cancer Institute (NCI)core$1.5M SBIR Phase II contract to develop circRNA detection platform. Previously completed Phase I for ciRS-7 circRNA sensor proof-of-concept.
- Librede, Inc.minorBiotechnology partner developing natural cannabinoids via fermentation. Potential collaboration on metabolite sensors for industrial biotechnology applications.
- AmerigoscientificminorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- AnnoronminorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- QFBiominorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- FunakoshiminorJapanese distributor of Lucerna products
- JenabioscienceminorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- MedChemExpressminorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- TocrisminorGlobal distributor of Lucerna products
- VWRminorUS-based global distributor of Lucerna products
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Lucerna competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- MedChemExpress: Global research chemical supplier offering fluorescent probes, dyes, and life science reagents across catalog and custom offerings. Currently a Lucerna distributor but also a peer given overlapping reagent portfolios and customer base.
- Lumiprobe: Manufacturer of specialty fluorescent dyes, labeling reagents, and reactive fluorophores sold directly to researchers. Directly comparable as a specialty fluorescent dye producer serving nucleic acid and protein labeling applications.
- APExBIO: Research reagent provider offering fluorescent probes, inhibitors, and molecular biology tools with global shipping and academic/biotech customer focus. Direct competitor in online catalog sales of specialty fluorescent and RNA biology reagents.
- AAT Bioquest: Specialty manufacturer of fluorescent probes, dyes, and assay kits for life science research, including nucleic acid labeling and live-cell imaging reagents. Closest direct peer in terms of fluorescent probe focus, product format, and SMB/research customer base.
Broad incumbents
- Promega: Life science reagent and instrument manufacturer with fluorescent detection chemistries, nucleic acid labeling tools, and cell-based assay kits. Comparable in serving pharma/biotech and academic researchers with overlapping reagent use cases.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific: Global life science tools leader offering a deep catalog of fluorescent nucleic acid probes, dyes, and RNA labeling reagents through Invitrogen and Molecular Probes brands. Broad incumbent with overlapping fluorescence/RNA reagent products and far larger distribution and R&D scale.
- Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT): Subsidiary of Danaher focused on custom nucleic acid synthesis, fluorescent probe chemistry, and RNA tools including labeling for imaging applications. Comparable in serving molecular biology and RNA biology research customers with related fluorescent reagent products.
- Bio-Rad Laboratories: Major life science research tools provider with fluorescent nucleic acid reagents, real-time PCR chemistry, and labeling kits that overlap with Lucerna's RNA imaging offering. Comparable in selling to academic and pharma researchers but with broader product breadth and global reach.
- New England Biolabs: Long-standing reagent manufacturer with deep catalogs in molecular biology enzymes, fluorescent labeling, and RNA research tools. Sells to overlapping academic and industrial research customers with comparable pricing tiers and global distribution.
- Bio-Techne (includes Tocris): Owns Tocris, one of Lucerna's distribution partners, and produces specialty biochemicals, fluorescent probes, and assay reagents for academic and pharma research. Direct overlap in fluorescent tool chemistries and assay-ready kits for life science research.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses2 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Lucerna social profiles
Digital presenceLucerna financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lucerna leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Lucerna funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lucerna M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lucerna
What does Lucerna do?
Lucerna develops, manufactures, and sells proprietary fluorescent RNA imaging reagents and custom RNA sensor development services built on the Spinach aptamer technology licensed from Cornell/Weill Cornell. Its offerings comprise five fluorophore products (DFHBI, DFHBI-1T, BI, DFHO, OBI) sold in 1/5/10 mg units, complemented by a custom RNA Splice Detection Sensor Development service for high-throughput drug discovery of RNA splice modulators in 96-/384-well formats.
Is Lucerna a public or private company?
Lucerna is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Lucerna founded?
Lucerna was founded in 2010. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Lucerna based?
Lucerna is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Lucerna make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Research Reagents Sales are the primary driver. The others are custom Sensor Development Services and SBIR Grant Funding.
Who are Lucerna's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are MedChemExpress, Lumiprobe, APExBIO and AAT Bioquest. Broad incumbents are Promega, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), Bio-Rad Laboratories, New England Biolabs and Bio-Techne (includes Tocris).
Does Lucerna have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lucerna.
What industry is Lucerna in?
Lucerna's product category is Biotech Research Reagents (RNA Imaging Tools). Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGAIAI, Reagents, Chemicals & Assay Kits (Buffers, Antibodies, ELISA, Enzymes), with a secondary code of HLAAAIAA, High-Throughput Screening & Assay Platforms (HTS/HCS, phenotypic screening). Its NAICS code is 541714 and its SIC code is 2890.