- Gives scientists a new view into natural cell activity, accelerating drug 
development

Merck ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2673097-1&h=2693526156&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.merckgroup.com%2F&a=Merck 
), a leading science and technology company, today announced that it has signed 
a license agreement providing Promega Corp. ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2673097-1&h=4210133846&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.promega.com%2F&a=Promega+Corp.%2C 
), a global life science manufacturer based in Madison, Wisconsin, USA access 
to Merck's foundational CRISPR intellectual property. Promega will use Merck's 
CRISPR genome-editing technology to create research products and services, 
including those for drug development.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1055734/Merck_CRISPR_Promega.jpg

"Under this licensing agreement, Promega plans to use our intellectual property 
to develop CRISPR-edited cell lines, which can play a major role in determining 
drug efficacy, toxicity and overall development," said Udit Batra, member of 
the Merck Executive Board and CEO, Life Science. 

The agreement will allow researchers to better read the physiological or 
natural levels of protein expression, which provides a more accurate 
understanding of protein behavior.

"This license further expands the potential of CRISPR, and, more importantly, 
gives scientists a new view into natural cell activity," said Bill Linton, 
president and CEO, Promega. "This is quite a meaningful contribution to many 
areas of applied research in such fields as cancer and neuroscience."

Promega is building a portfolio of CRISPR knock-in cell lines in addition to 
custom requests to meet the demands of customers studying protein dynamics. 

Merck intends to continue growing its CRISPR intellectual property portfolio 
with technologies such as paired Cas9 nickases, which reduce off-target 
effects, and proxy-CRISPR, which offers researchers more experimental options 
to accelerate drug development and access to new therapies.

Merck holds 22 CRISPR-related patents worldwide covering both methods and 
compositions, including the fundamental use of CRISPR-Cas9 for genetic 
integration in mammalian cells. 

As a user and supplier of genome-editing technology, Merck supports research 
with genome editing under careful consideration of ethical and legal standards. 
The company established an independent, external Bioethics Advisory Panel ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2673097-1&h=2970639217&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.merckgroup.com%2Fen%2Fcr-report%2F2018%2Fbusiness-ethics%2Fbioethics.html&a=Bioethics+Advisory+Panel 
) to provide guidance for research in which its businesses are involved, 
including research on or using genome editing. Merck has also defined a clear 
operational position ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=2673097-1&h=204171534&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.merckgroup.com%2Fcontent%2Fdam%2Fweb%2Fcorporate%2Fnon-images%2Fcompany%2Fresponsibility%2Fen%2Fregulations-and-guidelines%2Fgenome-editing-principle-EN.pdf&a=position 
) considering scientific and societal issues to inform promising therapeutic 
approaches for use in research and applications.

About Promega

Promega Corporation is a leader in providing innovative solutions and technical 
support to the life sciences industry. The company's 4,000 products enable 
scientists worldwide to advance their knowledge in genomics, proteomics, 
cellular analysis, drug discovery and human identification. Founding in 1978, 
the company is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, with branches in 16 
countries and more than 50 global distributors. For more information about 
Promega, visit www.promega.com

All Merck news releases are distributed by email at the same time they become 
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About Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, 
life science and performance materials. Around 56,000 employees work to make a 
positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more 
joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene- editing technologies 
and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling 
the intelligence of devices – Merck is everywhere. In 2018, Merck generated 
sales of €14.8 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to 
Merck's technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived 
since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of 
the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the "Merck" name 
and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the 
business sectors operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life 
science, and EMD Performance Materials.

SOURCE Merck

CONTACT:  karen.tiano@milliporesigma.com Phone: +49 6151 72 44461