September 30, 2024
Nature recently published an article featuring Samantha Zyontz, Clinical Assistant Professor of Strategy and Innovation, in celebration of the non-profit Addgene’s 20th anniversary.
Founded in 2004 by Melina Fan and colleagues, Addgene addresses the challenges of sharing plasmids, critical tools for genetic research. The non-profit manages logistics, quality control, and legal agreements, making it easier for scientists to access plasmids from around the world. CRISPR–Cas9 and its variations, including prime editing, have also become highly popular through Addgene, enabling groundbreaking gene-editing research.
“The rapid availability of CRISPR plasmids from a centralized distribution hub meant that any researcher — regardless of professional connections or geography — could play with these innovative tools in their own lab,” Zyontz adds.
Over the past two decades, Addgene has built a library of over 147,000 plasmids, shipping over 2 million samples globally.
