France headquartered genOway, a public company and leader in developing genetically modified research models, has announced an important milestone in extending its strategic alliance with Merck, a leading science and technology company and leader in genome editing.

In December 2018, genOway acquired from Merck exclusive worldwide rights on its foundational CRISPR/Cas9 portfolio in the rodent field (all applications involving rodent cells or animals). Today, the two companies have further strengthened their collaboration by entering into an additional license providing genOway with non-exclusive rights to commercialize the development and use of all other animal cell models for its customers' internal research uses as well as commercial exploitation.

"We are delighted to extend our relationship with Merck. The Merck IP is growing and broadening. Merck is now recognized as a leading provider of foundational CRISPR IP. This additional license will enable genOway to serve our customers better, by offering them broad and versatile solutions and the necessary intellectual property rights to help accelerate their research," says Alexandre Fraichard, founder and Chief Operating Officer of genOway.

Both Merck and genOway have identified research fields where they can combine their respective technologies and expertise to develop and validate new CRISPR/Cas9-related products and solutions. Merck's patented CRISPR integration technology is a strong entry point through which innovation can be developed and launched.