AskBio has acquired Synpromics, a provider of gene control synthetic promoter technology, bioinformatics, and intelligent data-driven design, to enable more precise cell targeting and gene expression. Synpromics will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary and remain headquartered in Edinburgh, UK.
 
AskBio’s AAV technology and multi-dimensional gene therapy platform combined with Synpromics’ promoter and bioinformatics technology create an opportunity to more accurately target complex diseases and improve the efficacy of AAV gene therapy vectors. Both companies will continue to operate as separate entities but will share intellectual property with immediate plans to integrate Synpromics’ technology with AskBio’s AAV platform ecosystem and current therapeutics portfolio under development. 
 
“By combining Synpromics’s customized synthetic promoters with AskBio’s capsids and Pro10™ manufacturing cell line, we have achieved technical leadership in each of the critical components for successful development of rAAV-based therapeutics,” said Sheila Mikhail, CEO and co-founder of AskBio. “With the Synpromics acquisition, we have enhanced our collective ability to develop highly targeted and maximally expressed gene therapies. Today AskBio is better positioned to tackle larger pathway diseases, as we continue our efforts to bring curative therapies for rare disease to patients in need.” 
 
“For some time, the field has understood that the three essential components for advancing successful AAV gene therapy has centered around production, capsids and promoters. Today AskBio has added the last critical component to our tool chest,” added Dr. Jude Samulski. “There is no doubt in my mind that the shared value of AskBio’s and Synpromics’ technologies marks a major step forward in the evolution of AAV gene therapy.”
 
“By combining AskBio’s AAV delivery platform with Synpromics’ gene regulation platform, we have created an unrivalled offering in gene medicine. In particular, integrating our inducible promoter systems into the AskBio platform will enable precision control in the next generation of therapies,” added Dr. Michael Roberts, the founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Synpromics. “This will also improve the AAV manufacturing process, further enabling the generation of stable producer cell lines. Our shared vision is that the synergies of our two platforms will evolve hand-in-hand to create solutions that can address more complex pathway diseases in the years to come.”