Ginkgo Bioworks, a world-leading synthetic biology firm, will establish a presence in Melbourne to in a move that will cement Victoria’s position as the Australia’s foremost mRNA research and manufacturing capital.
Ginkgo is a Boston-based company that has developed a cell engineering platform that can bring breakthroughs to a variety of industries, including pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals, and food and agriculture.
The company’s cell programming capabilities have been used to develop innovative products such as living medicines, therapeutic proteins, and gene and cell therapies, as well as ongoing research and development of new diagnostic tests and vaccines.
The firm was involved in the COVID-19 response and worldwide biosecurity efforts, collaborating with Moderna and Aldevron to apply its cell engineering know-how to boost mRNA vaccine production from raw materials.
Chief Commercial Officer Matt McKnight said Ginkgo has identified Victoria as a strong base for research into pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, mRNA development and biosecurity.
“Melbourne is one of the leading biomedical research communities in the world. We have to forge international collaborations like this because, as we have all learned, biology doesn’t respect borders,” Mr McKnight stated.
We are incredibly excited to work with mRNA Victoria and hope to expand into the Australian market.”
“We value the Victorian Government’s deep commitment to the mRNA ecosystem and related emerging technologies. With this support, Australia presents Ginkgo with a unique opportunity to bring our biosecurity and vaccine expertise to bear as we seek to detect, intercept, and mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic and future pandemic events.”
Victorian Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy Jaala Pulford said Ginkgo’s biology platform infrastructure and expertise “brings critical capability to Victoria’s biotech sector” and adds significant momentum to the state’s rapidly growing biotechnology ecosystem.
“The establishment of GinkgoBioworks’ office in Melbourne demonstrates that Victoria is the home of scientific and research expertise in mRNA,” the Minister said.
“This will provide access for local companies to access their cutting-edge technologies for the development of mRNA vaccines and other significant benefits to biosecurity and related industries.”
