10x Genomics made its first acquisition Aug. 28, with the purchase of Epinomics, a startup developing technologies for epigenetics research.
Epigenetics is the study of changes in an organism's DNA that are caused by modifying gene expression rather than altering genetic code. Epinomics offers a technology and analytics platform that helps scientists measure and understand the epigenome.
As part of the acquisition, 10x Genomics — which builds tools that aid scientists and researchers with sequencing genomic information — will integrate Epinomics' technology into its Chromium Single Cell ATAC Solution, which is expected to launch by the end of 2018.
"Our goal is to accelerate science and enable our customers to see biology they could not see before," said Serge Saxonov, CEO and co-founder of 10x Genomics. "Today's acquisition gives us a strong team, intellectual property and technology that has been enthusiastically validated by customers. It provides a foundation for powerful new products and positions us well to become the leader in epigenomics."
10x Genomics has raised more than $230 million from SoftBank, Venrock and other backers. It told CNBC the Epinomics acquisition was priced in the "double digits" but declined to share further financial details.