Pioneering DNA synthesis company — inventor of the Gibson Assembly® method and the BioXp™ system — furthers its mission to empower researchers in moving “from reading DNA to writing and printing DNA”

San Diego, April 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SGI-DNA, Inc., creators of the world’s first fully automated system for high-throughput writing of DNA, the BioXp™ 3200 system, today announced the business rebrand to Codex DNA, Inc. The rebrand signifies and solidifies the company’s mission to empower scientific researchers in both academic and commercial settings with the hardware, software, materials, and methodologies required to rapidly and accurately write large quantities of synthetic genes for use in a variety of areas including vaccine development, personalized medicine, whole genome construction, and DNA data storage.

“We chose the name Codex as the word means, essentially, an ancient manuscript,” said Todd R. Nelson, Ph.D., CEO of Codex. “And there’s no manuscript more ancient or more meaningful than the code written into the DNA of every living thing. We aim to equip researchers in drug discovery, vaccine development, precision medicine, and DNA data storage with all they need to design, code, synthesize, and print genes.”

Codex’s portfolio includes the BioXp™ 3200 system — the world’s first and only fully automated, commercially available gene synthesis platform — Gibson Assembly® reagents (including Gibson Assembly™ Ultra and Gibson Assembly® RapidAMP™ Ultra kits), and Vmax™ X2 cells — a next-generation bacterial expression system.

The Gibson Assembly® method, created by Daniel G. Gibson, Ph.D., Chief Technology Officer and co-founder of Codex, is the gold standard molecular cloning method and allows for the joining of multiple DNA fragments to build genes and genomes in a single, isothermal reaction. The Gibson Assembly® method can be done on the benchtop or directly on the BioXp™ system.

“The work we’re doing at Codex builds on the pioneering work of Dan Gibson and his team, and the work most of us have been doing throughout our careers in genomics,” says Codex’s Chief Commercial Officer Brian Donnelly.

“Over the past 20 years, since the mapping of the human genome, the scientific community has made tremendous advances in reading and understanding DNA. Now, it’s time for the next step: translating that understanding into solutions that improve lives and the sustainability of the planet,” said Donnelly. “Codex uniquely positions researchers by empowering them to synthesize and print DNA more rapidly, more cost-effectively, and more securely than ever before. In the same way software developers build computer applications, we want to help our customers build biology, moving them from reading DNA to writing and printing DNA.”

About Codex

Codex is building biology. Creators of the BioXp™ system, the world’s only fully automated gene synthesis platform, and the industry-standard Gibson Assembly® methodology, Codex empowers researchers with the tools they need to rapidly and securely design, code, and synthesize DNA. Codex is accelerating advances in the fields of personalized medicine, antibody engineering, vaccine development, drug discovery, and DNA storage. For more information, visit codexdna.com.

Ruth Petersen
Codex
858.433.5907
ruth@codexdna.com