DNA Software, Inc. Honored as 2009 “Michigan 50 Companies to Watch”
Michigan 50 Companies to Watch
ANN ARBOR, MI – April 29, 2009 – DNA Software, Inc. has been recognized as one of the 2009 “Michigan 50 Companies to Watch,” an awards program sponsored by the Edward Lowe Foundation and presented by Michigan Celebrates Small Business.
DNA Software, Inc. is a unique life sciences technology company that conducts original wet lab research, develops advanced bioinformatics tools, sells molecular biology software, and provides advanced scientific consulting. DNA Software’s products and services improve the work of scientists who conduct nucleic acid-based research.
Nucleic acids, commonly known as DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (Ribonucleic acid), are the molecular building blocks of life, form the basis of genetic blueprints, and direct activities in living organisms. DNA Software’s tools help scientists to quickly and accurately develop new medical solutions from this nucleic acid information.
Award Underscores DNA Software’s Innovation, Impact, and Growth
“The Michigan 50 Companies to Watch award is an appreciated honor that recognizes DNA Software’s ongoing efforts to conduct original science, develop and commercialize innovative technologies, help the scientific community solve major challenges, and expand our business in new areas”, states Donald Hicks, President and CEO of DNA Software, Inc.
Mr. Hicks continues “DNA Software has a successful record of turning NIH SBIR funded R&D into commercial products. Many research organizations around the world and a variety of industries have benefited from DNA Software’s technologies. DNA Software is helping the US government to address important health challenges. For example, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention uses DNA Software’s Visual OMP™ assay development software to design life-saving diagnostic tests. The U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases is utilizing DNA Software’s OMP Developer Edition™ high-throughput, computer cluster software to anticipate and mitigate biological threats. In addition, DNA Software has partnered with the Department of Homeland Security to expand the use of DNA Software’s ThermoBLAST ™ genome scanning software for biodefense applications.”
Jeff Machak, Vice President of Business Development, adds “Since its founding in 2000, DNA Software has steadily grown its commercial business and built an extensive customer list. Over the past few years, we have refocused our business model and experienced growth in revenue through increased sales, SBIR funding, and government contract work. Moreover, we have expanded our strategic alliances with government agencies, academic institutions, Fortune 500 companies, and international sales partners. DNA Software has doubled its staff within the past year and hired top talent from Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Siemens. Most recently, we have expanded our R&D pipeline to create exciting new technologies for improved diagnostics development and drug discovery.”
About the “50 Companies to Watch” Award
“In today’s economy, Companies to Watch has become a real game changer,” says Penny Lewandowski, director of entrepreneurship development at the Edward Lowe Foundation, a nonprofit operating foundation based in Michigan. “It changes the conversation from slow-growth, layoffs and closings, to companies that are expanding, hiring, and moving beyond traditional markets.”
Companies nominated for the Michigan 50 Companies to Watch list must be second-stage companies and meet criteria for number of employees, sales revenue, and growth. In addition, the companies must be privately-held and headquartered in Michigan.
Winners were selected by judges from the banking, economic development, entrepreneurship development, and venture capital communities. Judges evaluated the nominees’ intent and capacity to grow based on factors which included exceptional entrepreneurial leadership, competitive advantage, and demonstrable growth in sales and employee base.
Information about the 2009 Michigan 50 Companies to Watch program can be found athttp://Michigan.CompaniesToWatch.org
For information about Michigan Celebrates Small Business, visit http://MichiganCelebrates.biz
About DNA Software, Inc.
DNA Software, Inc. was founded in 2000 to commercialize the advances in nucleic acid chemistry discovered by world-renowned expert Dr. John SantaLucia, Jr. (the company’s Chief Scientist). DNA Software’s technologies have become the standard of excellence for nucleic acid research and diagnostics development.
DNA Software is a unique software company considering that it conducts original wet-lab research. The company’s software programs are the most accurate and comprehensive tools available because their advanced algorithms and models are driven by a large database of thousands of diverse, wet lab-derived, experimental results. DNA Software’s tools correctly design and simulate complicated experiments on the first attempt. Customers can simulate thousands of experiments with the software before running a single experiment in a wet lab. Thus, DNA Software’s technologies save customers significant time, resources, and money that would have been wasted on trial-and-error experimentation.
DNA Software offers contract research, custom software development, commercial web applications, and scientific consulting for nucleic acid research. The company also licenses packaged software tools that help scientists quickly and accurately develop new assays, diagnostics, and therapeutics. OMP™ (Oligonucleotide Modeling Platform™), the core engine that runs all of DNA Software’s tools, models in silico the folding and hybridization of nucleic acids with exception accuracy. Visual OMP™ is a platform program for the design, simulation, and analysis of probes/primers, RT-PCR, qPCR, Multiplex PCR, Taqman, Beacons, Scorpions, Microarrays, SNP detection, FRET assays, RNAi, LATE-PCR, plus new formats. OMP Developer EditionTM (OMP DE™) brings customizable, command line, high-throughput computing power to large assay design projects or enterprise applications. ThermoBLAST™ quickly and accurately scans DNA, RNA, or hybrid sequences against genome databases and eliminates all assay false positives or probe/primer mishybridizations.
The company has recently expanded its original DNA and RNA-based, molecular biology solutions to include modified nucleotides, oligonucleotide kinetics, and structural biology.