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The University of Colorado Connection

is a Colorado-based biotech startup developing a screening platform for drug candidates that target transcription factors and chromatin regulators. The company was founded through the Â鶹Ãâ·Ñ°æÏÂÔØ's Embark Deep Tech Startup Creator, where , founder and CEO, met , professor of biochemistry at Â鶹Ãâ·Ñ°æÏÂÔØBoulder and the company's founding scientist. Enlixa is built around RIFT (Real-time In vitro Fluorescent Transcription), an assay invented in the Taatjes Lab. Taatjes has spent more than 20 years at Â鶹Ãâ·Ñ°æÏÂÔØBoulder studying transcription regulation, with more than 18,000 citations and more than 70 publications. Chopra has been an early employee at multiple startups, including Natera and Guardant Health, supporting assay development, operations and commercialization.

Most drug candidates that target transcription factors fail in the clinic because of off-target cross-reactivity that RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and quantitative PCR (qPCR) cannot detect, since those methods only infer effects on RNA polymerase II (RNAPII). RIFT directly measures RNAPII transcription in real time at single-molecule resolution, with the potential to resolve potency and on-target and off-target selectivity for targets including CDKs, CBP and MYC. Enlixa plans to deliver RIFT as a fee-for-service screen, targeting diseases with high unmet need.

Funding Status and Investment Opportunities

• Industry Applications: Health and Wellness, Biotech, Diagnostics
• Funding Round: Pre-Seed
• Contact for Investment Inquiries: , nik@enlixabio.com

ÌýÌý ÌýThis page was last updated on Sept. 25, 2026. Please email vpnews@colorado.edu for corrections or updates