Plant biotechnology relies on efficient protoplast isolation, yet current manual procedures remain slow, variable and resource intensive. This lack of standardisation limits the scalability of transformation, genome editing, and synthetic biology workflows at a time when accelerated innovation in sustainable plant systems is urgently needed. ProtoBoost responds with the first integrated microfluidic platform for automated protoplast isolation, uniting the ProtoSep chip and ProtoPump controller in a compact, user-ready system. Early validation shows a substantial reduction in labour time and reagent use, and ProtoBoost will advance the technology from TRL4 to TRL6 through iterative prototyping, testing in real laboratory environments, workflow optimisation, and market and investor validation. By the end of the project, ProtoBoost will deliver a pre-commercial prototype with a documented manufacturing process and a credible go-to-market pathway.
This project contributes to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 Zero Hunger, and 9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure.
