Friday 24th July, Ireland SeqBiome, a spinout from APC Microbiome Ireland SFI Research Centre, University College Cork (UCC) and Teagasc, has been launched today, providing high-quality, interactive sequencing and microbiome analysis for academia and industry. It will create meaningful microbiome insights for clients across industries such as pharmaceuticals, nutrition, sport, healthcare, agriculture and other life sciences.

Commenting on the launch, Director of APC Microbiome Ireland SFI Research Centre, Prof Paul Ross, said: “SeqBiome is a great example of APC’s ambition to translate high-quality research and state-of-the-art capability into commercial reality with the creation of increased critical mass, hi-tech jobs and economic success, centred around microbiome science. This is perfectly aligned with SFI objectives and government strategy to deliver economic impact built on a world-class scientific knowledge base.”

Welcoming the announcement, Prof Mark Ferguson, Director General, Science Foundation Ireland and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland, said: “I am delighted to see SeqBiome launch in the areas of sequence analysis and bioinformatics, demonstrating the strength of the Irish research ecosystem in supporting the commercialisation and transfer of cutting-edge research into the marketplace. It highlights the important role played by the SFI Research Centres in advancing knowledge, enhancing enterprise and industry, developing critical skills and growing Ireland’s international reputation for research excellence.”

Also welcoming the annoucement, Prof Anita R. Maguire, VP Research & Innovation, UCC, said: "The launch of SeqBiome, as the most recent spin-out company to emerge based on the excellent research underway within APC, is very welcome – bringing this capability in sequencing and bioinformatic analysis of microbiome to commercial reality is a tremendous milestone for those involved in this research area within APC.

Dr Marcus Claesson, SeqBiome founder and CEO, also commented: “Microbiome analysis is a complex and time-consuming process. It requires the support of expensive sequencing facilities, significant computational power and an extensive expertise in bioinformatic analysis and interpretation. Without these in-house capabilities, commercial organisations struggle to derive meaningful and reliable information about their products and their impact on microbiomes. After a short few months our existing clients and partners already include Nestle, MARS Petcare, Atlantia, Alpinia Institute, Microbion and the PrecisionBiotics Group. We’re building a vastly experienced team with a shared vision to help these and other organisations develop world class products that make a real difference to microbiome health."

UCC Innovation Director, Dr Rich Ferrie, added: ’UCC Innovation has played a key role in the launch of new UCC spin out SeqBiome Ltd and I am delighted to see the establishment of this exciting company which has seen first-class research and state-of-the-art capability transition into a commercial reality with endless possibilities for growth and expansion."

Teagasc Director, Prof Gerry Boyle, said: “Teagasc is delighted to see the launch of the spin-out company, SeqBiome Ltd. It’s a further reflection of the cutting-edge nature of the applied microbiome, DNA sequencing- and bioinformatics-related research that is carried out at Teagasc. It also exemplifies another route through which Teagasc can contribute to high quality job creation to support the Irish economy. We wish co-founder and CTO, Prof Paul Cotter, who is the Head of Food Biosciences at Teagasc, and his APC Microbiome Ireland colleague and CEO, Dr Marcus Claesson, and executive Director, Brad Wrigley, the very best with this venture and note the important contributions of Dr Orla O’Sullivan and Dr Fiona Crispie of Teagasc in the establishment of SeqBiome.”

Visit www.seqbiome.com for more information.