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ERS Genomics Licenses CRISPR-Cas9 Genome Editing IP to GenAhead Bio

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Biotechnology company GenAhead Bio said today that it has signed a non-exclusive license agreement with ERS Genomics that provides GenAhead with access to ERS' CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing intellectual property.

Fujisawa, Japan-based GenAhead, which was spun out of Takeda Pharmaceutical in April, is aiming to build a genome editing service and nucleic acid delivery business for pharmaceutical drug discovery and development. Through the licensing deal with ERS, GenAhead said it will offer CRISPR-Cas9 services to pharmaceutical companies and researchers to produce cells with precise genetic modifications utilizing high knock-in efficiency — such as SNP conversions as a cellular disease model — in any mammalian cell line.

"Through our agreement with ERS Genomics, we are pleased to be able to enhance the success of our customers' research programs by offering original state-of-the-art CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing services with significantly high knock-in efficiency," GenAhead CEO Tsukasa Sugo said in a statement.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Earlier this month, ERS signed a licensing deal for its CRISPR IP with Axcelead Drug Discovery Partners, also a Japan-based drug discovery services provider spun out of Takeda Pharmaceutical. ERS CEO Eric Rhodes noted that was the firm's first license in Japan following the issuance of its patent in Japan in May.

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