Editas Medicine Licenses Genome Editing Technology from Massachusetts General Hospital

Exclusive Agreement Provides Access to Intellectual Property and Technology for a Broad Range of Therapeutic and Agricultural Applications

Cambridge, Mass., December 1, 2014 – Editas Medicine, a leading genome editing company, today announced that they have entered into an exclusive license agreement with Massachusetts General Hospital to access intellectual property and technology related to the CRISPR/Cas9 and TALENs genome editing systems. The license allows broad utilization of the technology developed in the laboratory of Editas founder, J. Keith Joung, M.D., Ph.D., for the prevention and treatment of human or animal disease, and broad agricultural use.

“Editas was conceptualized and built by pioneers in the field of genome editing, and we are proud to have Keith and MGH as partners in this endeavor,” said Katrine Bosley, chief executive officer, Editas Medicine. “Keith has made significant advances in designing genome editing molecules that are specific and precise in their actions. This is a critical element in creating robust medicines and is also a critical element of the broad and integrated scientific platform that we are building at Editas.”

About Genome Editing

Following an explosion of high-profile publications on CRISPR/Cas9 and TALENs, genome editing has emerged as one of the most exciting new areas of scientific research. These recent advances have made it possible to modify, in a targeted way, almost any gene in the human body with the ability to directly turn on, turn off or edit disease- causing genes. Editas Medicine’s five founders have published much of the foundational work that has elevated genome editing technology to a level where it can now be optimized and developed for therapeutic use.

CRISPR (clustered, regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)/Cas9 (CRISPR- associated protein 9) and TALENs (transcription activator-like effector nucleases) comprise novel gene editing methods that overcome the challenges associated with previous technologies. Early published research on CRISPR/Cas9, coupled with a growing body of work on TALENs, suggests the potential to pursue therapeutic indications that have previously been intractable to traditional gene therapy, gene knock- down or other genome modification techniques. The CRISPR/Cas9 system, the most recent and exciting approach to emerge, acts by a mechanism in which the Cas9 protein binds to specific RNA molecules. The RNA molecules guide the Cas9 complex to the exact location in the genome that requires repair. CRISPR/Cas9 uniquely enables highly efficient knock-out, knock-down or selective editing of defective genes in the context of their natural promoters, unlocking the ability to treat the root cause of a broad range of diseases.

About Editas Medicine

Editas is a leading genome editing company and part of a transformational new area of health care – genomic medicine. The company was founded by the pioneers and world leaders in genome editing bringing specific expertise in CRISPR/Cas9 and TALENs technologies. The company’s mission is to translate its proprietary technology into novel solutions to treat a broad range of genetically-driven diseases. For more information, visit www.editasmedicine.com.

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