NEW YORK, Dec. 17 (GenomeWeb News) - Two Japanese companies have invested $11 million in SomaLogic, the company said today.
Mitsui & Co, an earlier investor in SomaLogic, has invested $10 million in the company, which will support the opening of a joint division of the companies in Asia, while plastics manufacturer Sumitomo Bakelite has invested $1 million, and will collaborate with SomaLogic to develop surfaces for the company's aptamer microarrays, SomaLogic said.
"The combined investments from Mitsui and Sumitomo Bakelite greatly advance our shared goal of commercializing SomaLogic's technology and establishing a presence in Asia," stated Dr. Larry Gold, SomaLogic's Chairman of the Board, Chief Scientific Officer and the inventor of aptamers. "As strong regional partners they will help us build the relationships critical to success in this region."
SomaLogic, of Boulder, Colorado, is developing protein microarrays using aptamers, single-stranded DNA and RNA molecules that specifically bind to target molecules with high affinity.