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Story 04 July 2019
Public

Stories: DNA Script raised $38.5 Million in Series B Financing

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Ana Luisa Pinho

The European Innovation Council pilot's funded company DNA Script  raised $38.5 Million in Series B Financing led by LSP, one of Europe's largest and most experienced healthcare investment firms. The proceeds will enable DNA Script to accelerate the development of the company's first products based on its industry-leading enzymatic technology for de novo synthesis of nucleic acids.

Bpifrance, through its Large Venture fund, joined the round, alongside existing investors Illumina Ventures, M. Ventures, Sofinnova Partners, Kurma Partners and Idinvest Partners.

DNA Script's innovative technology provides affordable, rapid, high-quality production of important genomic experimental precursors, such as oligonucleotides. The technology overcomes many of the inefficiencies of today's synthetic DNA production. It features a novel biochemical process for nucleic acids synthesis based on the use of highly efficient enzymes, thus enabling enhanced performance while minimizing the use of harsh chemicals. The product portfolio based on DNA Script's proprietary enzymatic synthesis platform will enable molecular biology researchers to accelerate their experiments — with the goal of moving from design to results within a day for a broad range of applications. 

 

"In less than two years since our last financing round, the DNA Script team has developed enzymatic synthesis technology at an incredibly fast pace and extended the company's lead in this exciting and quickly expanding sector. As we announced earlier this year at the AGBT General Meeting, DNA Script was the first company to enzymatically synthesize a 200mer oligo de novo with an average coupling efficiency that rivals the best organic chemical processes in use today. Our technology is now reliable enough for its first commercial applications, which we believe will deliver the promise of same-day results to researchers everywhere, with DNA synthesis that can be completed in just a few hours," said Thomas Ybert, CEO and cofounder of DNA Script. 

 

"We are thrilled to lead this round with participation of such a respected group of founders and investors. We see DNA Script as the clear leader in this nascent field," said Joachim (JR) Rothe, Managing Partner at LSP and new member of DNA Script's board. "The progress made by DNA Script in only two years is amazing, and we believe the company will shift the current DNA synthesis paradigm, not only in the research market but also in the broader pharma business — for personalized therapies and diagnostics in particular." 

 

DNA Script is a biotech company founded in 2014 in France, developing and manufacturing de novo synthetic nucleic acids using an enzymatic technology. The company aims at accelerating innovation in life sciences and technology through rapid, affordable, and high-quality DNA synthesis. DNA Script’s approach leverages nature's billions of years of evolution in synthesizing DNA to enable genome scale synthesis. The company’s technology has the potential to greatly accelerate the development of new therapeutics, sustainable chemicals production, improved crops as well as data storage.

DNA Script has received a Phase 1 grant from the EIC pilot SME Instrument in 2018.

The company is prioritizing the recruitment of top talent in the U.S. for its product development and commercialization teams in preparation for product launch, as well as on expanding its Paris-based research team.

 

View DNA Script's information on the EIC SME Instrument data hub.

 

DISCLAIMER: This information is provided in the interest of knowledge sharing and should not be interpreted as the official view of the European Commission, or any other organisation.

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