Synthego Appoints CRISPR Pioneer Dr. Jennifer Doudna to Advisory Board to Accelerate Company's Genome Engineering Mission

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., March 28, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Synthego, a leading provider of genome engineering solutions, today announced that genomic industry pioneer Dr. Jennifer Doudna has joined the company's advisory board. Doudna, best known for her discovery of CRISPR, will advise Synthego on a variety of product, partnership and business strategy initiatives in order to further amplify and direct the company's fast-growing impact in the genome engineering space.

Discovered by Doudna and her team in 2012, CRISPR now serves as the foundation for modern genome engineering and is considered one of the most exciting life sciences advancements in history. Using CRISPR, scientists can precisely and efficiently edit DNA to cure diseases and solve some of society's biggest challenges. As one of the industry's leading innovators, Doudna will bring her expertise and strategic counsel to Synthego's board as the company accelerates the adoption of CRISPR, makes it increasingly easy to access and works to standardize its application across areas of life sciences, such as biopharma.

"I've been watching players in the genome engineering space for a long time, and Synthego is one of the most promising -- and necessary -- companies I've seen emerge in the field," Doudna said. "By making these scientific advancements more accessible, Synthego is poised to have an enormous impact on innovators and researchers in life sciences and will transform the industry by making CRISPR simpler, faster and more valuable to thousands who previously couldn't realize its potential."

The efficiency and agility behind Synthego's technology has positioned the company as one of the world's leading authorities on CRISPR. Synthego's full-stack genome engineering platform expedites research processes and allows scientists to study the fundamentals of biology, develop novel therapeutics for human disease, advance agriculture, and produce sustainable energy and chemicals. Most importantly, Synthego's CRISPR offering is easily incorporated into existing workflows, enabling rapid and cost-effective research with consistent, accurate results for every scientist.

"As one of the foremost leaders of genome engineering, Jennifer will greatly enhance our efforts in bringing biology as a service to life sciences," said Paul Dabrowski, Chief Executive Officer of Synthego. "We are establishing the concept of, and setting the standards for, agile biopharma by bringing engineering principles to the field of biology. With Jennifer by our side, we will create a new approach to genome engineering. We are humbled and thrilled to bring her on board."

Doudna joins Sir Andrew Witty, former CEO Of GlaxoSmithKline and Director of UnitedHealth Group, on Synthego's advisory board. Sir Witty joined in September 2017 and brings broad experience in the biopharmaceutical market to the team.

About Synthego
Synthego is advancing the adoption of genome engineering by making it easier and faster for scientists to unlock the power of CRISPR. Using principles of agile development, Synthego's full-stack genome engineering tools bring a new level of precision and automation to scientific research. Leading institutions in more than 32 countries around the world, eight of the 10 largest global biotechnology companies, and 24 of the top 25 global biology universities turn to Synthego to accelerate basic scientific discovery, uncover critical disease cures and develop novel synthetic biology applications to improve and prolong life. Synthego was recently recognized as one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies.

About Dr. Jennifer Doudna and The Doudna Lab
Dr. Jennifer Doudna is a professor of chemistry at the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research group, The Doudna Lab uses biochemical and structural methods to investigate RNA:protein interactions and has published various research studies on applications of CRISPR-Cas9.

CONTACT: Jordyn Lee, The Bateman Group for Synthego, Synthego@bateman-group.com