Orchid Cellmark Ltd is a UK based
DNA and forensic testing company with a history of UK and US ownership.
Cellmark was established in 1987 by
ICI having licensed the DNA Fingerprinting technology developed
Alec Jeffreys
Sir Alec John Jeffreys, (born 9 January 1950) is a British geneticist known for developing techniques for genetic fingerprinting and DNA profiling which are now used worldwide in forensic science to assist police detective work and to resolv ...
at the
University of Leicester and received a Queen's Award for Technological Achievement in 1990. The company was established to develop and provide specialist DNA testing services and now delivers a range of accredited DNA and forensic services for relationship testing and criminal investigation. Cellmark was the first private paternity testing company in the UK and participated in the consultation process which led to the establishment of the Department of Health's voluntary code of practice on genetic paternity testing in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The company undertakes DNA paternity testing on behalf of the CSA and provides accredited DNA relationship testing to support immigration and Visa applications.
When ICI demerged in 1993, Cellmark became part of Zeneca and then part of
AstraZeneca in 1998. Cellmark was acquired by Orchid BioSciences Inc in 2001. Based in Princeton, New Jersey Orchid BioSciences Inc subsequently changed its name to Orchid Cellmark Inc and operated DNA laboratories in Germantown, Dallas and Nashville, Tennessee. Cellmark was registered in the UK as Orchid Cellmark Ltd in 2005.
In December 2011, Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (
LabCorp) completed the acquisition of Orchid Cellmark Inc. In 2015 the company acquired Keith Borer Consultants, based in Durham, who provide forensic defence services through its wholly owned subsidiary, OCM Acquisition Corp.
It is now, in the United States, called Cellmark Forensics, Inc.
In 2018 the management team at Orchid Cellmark Ltd acquired the company from
LabCorp.
The company is now one of the major providers of forensic services to police forces in England and Wales and has laboratories in
Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, and
Chorley
Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth came pr ...
, Lancashire.
See also
In February 2007, the company's location in
Abingdon-on-Thames,
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
was targeted as part of the
Miles Cooper letter bomb campaign
In the United Kingdom, a series of seven letter bombs were sent during January and February 2007 to various companies and agencies, all related in some way to DNA testing and road transport. Police said that some of the letters were hand written a ...
. One person, a pregnant receptionist, was injured.
References
External links
Cellmark [PaternityCellmark Forensics
OJ Simpson's DNA given to Museumestablishments in the United Kingdom
Companies established in 1987
Companies based in Oxfordshire
1987 establishments in England
Genetics in the United Kingdom
Imperial Chemical Industries
Service companies of England
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