California, USA. 17 July, 2018. Labcyte Inc., today announced an agreement with the Center for Excellence in Engineering Biology (CEEB), an independent nonprofit that is managing initial planning and coordination of efforts for the Genome Project-write (GP-write).
As part of the agreement, Labcyte will provide preferred pricing and in-kind support to researchers at qualified laboratories that are affiliated with and contributing to the mission and goals of GP-write. Additionally, Labcyte will provide selected researchers with early access to certain new products it develops.
GP-write is an open, international scientific research project led by a multi-disciplinary group of scientific leaders who expect to oversee a reduction in the costs of engineering and testing of large genomes in cell lines by more than 1,000-fold within 10 years. Thus far, nearly 200 scientists affiliated with more than 100 organizations from 15 countries are involved in the project. Additionally, GP-write is developing new technologies, an ethical framework for genome-scale engineering and transformative medical applications.
Labcyte is one of the founding members of the GP-write Industry Advisory Board, which is charged with developing complete workflow solutions for laboratories participating in the project. With its revolutionary acoustic liquid handling technology that enables the rapid synthesis and quality control of DNA assemblies, the company is a leader in enabling key steps for synthetic biology applications.
Traditional DNA assembly methods require reactions of 10 to 20 microliters per well. Echo® Liquid Handlers from Labcyte reduce reaction volumes by up to 100x, enabling scientists to achieve drastically reduced reagent costs, along with faster, more accurate liquid transfers without the risk of contact-induced volume loss or contamination associated with tip-based instruments. Market-leading synthetic biology companies use Echo Liquid Handlers to automate gene synthesis with higher throughput and lower cost than they could with pipette-based systems. More information about the company’s solutions for synthetic biology can be found here.
Labcyte Chief Executive Officer Mark Fischer-Colbrie commented, “Synthetic biology is another rapidly growing application of our touchless acoustic liquid handling systems which are broadly used in workflows ranging from drug discovery to personalized medicine to diagnostics, all of which achieve lower costs, faster assembly times and less reagent consumption. We are delighted to partner with GP-write and to support researchers working in this field. We look forward to seeing how we can innovate and push discoveries ahead faster together.”
“Labcyte is an ideal partner for this important and far-reaching project, which aims to facilitate the use of biological engineering to address many global challenges facing humanity,” said Nancy J. Kelley, organizer and lead executive of the CEEB. “Labcyte’s revolutionary technology is uniquely suited to accelerate the work of the interdisciplinary research teams working around the globe that have engaged with GP-write.”
About GP-write
The GP-write Leadership Group includes Jef Boeke, Founding Director, Institute for Systems Genetics, NYU Langone Health; George Church, Core Faculty, Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard Medical School; Andrew Hessel, CEO, Humane Genomics, Inc. and Nancy J Kelley, President and CEO, Nancy J Kelley & Associates. GP-write is being implemented through the Center of Excellence for Engineering Biology, which supports the formation and work of multi-institutional and interdisciplinary research teams working in a highly integrated fashion, responsive to and engaged with a broad public outreach. To date, nearly 200 scientists, affiliated with more than 100 institutions/companies in 15 countries, are participating in GP-write. For more information about GP-write and the Center of Excellence for Engineering Biology, visit http://www.engineeringbiologycenter.org
About Labcyte Inc.
Labcyte, a global biotechnology tools company headquartered in San Jose, California, is revolutionizing liquid handling. Echo® liquid handling systems use sound to precisely transfer liquids without contact, eliminating the use of pipettes. Labcyte instruments are used worldwide throughout the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, as well as by hospitals, service laboratories, contract research organizations, and academic institutions. Our customers work across a wide spectrum of scientific research, including drug discovery, genomics, proteomics, diagnostics and personalized medicine. Labcyte has 62 U.S. patents and others internationally. For more information, visit www.labcyte.com.
For further information: Contact Vicky La Touche-Price in Seroba Life Sciences, Tel: +35316334028.