Internationally recognized gene therapy specialist, Jon Wolff, along with his colleagues James Hagstrom and Vladimir Budker founded the company in 1995, based on research they performed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Mirus was founded on the principle that non-viral (i.e. plasmid DNA based) methods offer distinct advantages over viral methods of gene transfer. Our initial breakthrough in 1996 came with the development of a new type of transfection reagent that combined high efficiency delivery with low cellular toxicity: TransIT®-LT1 (Low Toxicity) Reagent remains the “gold standard” for broad-based gene delivery applications.

In 2001, our scientists applied the fundamentals of delivery to the emerging field of RNA interference and introduced the first transfection reagent specifically designed to deliver siRNA with the highest efficiencies: TransIT-TKO® Transfection Reagent.

While developing and commercializing the most relied upon transfection reagents, our commitment to the research community reached beyond delivery technologies, offering scientists tools from our bench: The Label IT® non-enzymatic nucleic acid labeling, a method of choice for studies of intracellular nucleic acid tracking. The Label IT® technology employs proprietary chemistry to covalently attach labeling molecules to DNA and RNA. This simple one-step process is faster and more robust than traditional multi-step enzymatic labeling, and can be used for intracellular tracking, chromosome analysis, and microarray labeling.

With an understanding that some cell types were resistant to chemical transfection, in 2008 Mirus researchers developed and introduced: Ingenio® Electroporation Solutions, a method that can be used on any conventional device.

Transfection 101-Striking the Balance - Video