First Product Release from Inscripta’s Enzyme Engineering Platform

Boulder, Colo. – December 13, 2017 – In a huge step forward for innovation in the cutting-edge field of CRISPR gene-editing, Inscripta – a gene-editing technology company – announced today that it is releasing one of its own, unique CRISPR enzymes, which will be free for all researchers to use.Called MAD7, this enzyme is now available for all research with no up-front licensing fees or onerous “reach through royalties” on products made using this technology. If one wants to use MAD7 for non-R&D uses – such as manufacturing, inclusion of the enzyme in therapeutics, or for resale – then Inscripta will charge a low, single-digit royalty, which is far below the standard industry terms.“Gene-editing opens up huge possibilities for advances in how we feed, fuel, and heal humanity. Yet for too long, commercial access to CRISPR enzymes has been controlled by the technology transfer arms of a few major research institutions, which have restricted access with prohibitive terms of use,” said Kevin Ness, CEO of Inscripta. “Today, Inscripta is liberating the scientific community, giving them a clear path to pursue new research and discoveries using MAD7, and sparking innovations across biotechnology.”The Madagascar family of enzymes – “MADzymes” – is being developed by Inscripta researchers. MAD7 has been initially characterized in S. cerevisiae and E. coli. It is a promising breakthrough in CRISPR gene-editing, and is an early release from a family of novel RNA-guided nucleases being developed by Inscripta. By releasing MAD7 broadly at this early stage, Inscripta believes that it will catalyze the testing, improvement, and adoption of MAD7 and expedite the development of the MADzyme family for the benefit of researchers worldwide.“This will be of keen interest to the research community. By making CRISPR enzymes free to use, Inscripta is helping to drive innovation across the genome-editing field,” said Michael Fischbach, associate professor of bioengineering at Stanford University. “Improved RNA-guided enzymes hold great promise for breakthroughs in academia and industry.”In parallel, Inscripta is developing a broad family of CRISPR enzymes and gene-editing technologies so researchers will have many more of the tools they need in this rapidly expanding field. Specifically, over the coming months, Inscripta will continue to characterize and test MAD7 on mammalian cells, develop new MAD enzymes including bespoke enzymes for researchers and commercial partners, and work on a full suite of gene-editing tools (software, instruments, and reagents) that will significantly increase the speed and efficiency of CRISPR gene-editing. Future MADzymes will benefit from Inscripta’s high throughput, multiplexed genetic engineering platform to create enhanced enzymes for specific customer applications.Inscripta – formerly known as Muse Biotechnology – is led by several genomic technology veterans including Kevin Ness, who co-founded QuantaLife and 10x Genomics, and John Stuelpnagel, co-founder and first CEO of Illumina (NYSE: ILMN), who is now chair of Inscripta’s board.“Inscripta is where Illumina was 15 years ago,” said Stuelpnagel, “and is poised to revolutionize genome-writing, just like Illumina did for genome-reading.”Specifics on how to obtain and work with MAD7, as well as initial data on its performance, is available for download at www.inscripta.com.

About Inscripta

Inscripta is a gene-editing technology company dedicated to creating the tools needed to revolutionize how we feed, fuel, and heal humanity. This includes developing a family of CRISPR enzymes (called MADzymes), bespoke nucleases for researchers and commercial partners, and a full suite of gene-editing tools (software, instruments, and reagents) that will significantly increase the speed and efficiency of precision gene-editing. Formerly known as Muse Biotechnology, Inscripta is led by several genomic technology veterans including CEO Kevin Ness, who co-founded QuantaLife and 10x Genomics, and John Stuelpnagel, the chair of the company’s board, who was co-founder and first CEO of Illumina (NYSE: ILMN). Inscripta is headquartered in Boulder, Colo.; has offices in Pleasanton, Calif.; and is backed by Venrock, MLS Capital, NanoDimension, Foresite Capital, and Paladin Capital.