Affymetrix
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Affymetrix is now Applied Biosystems, a brand of
DNA microarray A DNA microarray (also commonly known as DNA chip or biochip) is a collection of microscopic DNA spots attached to a solid surface. Scientists use DNA microarrays to measure the expression levels of large numbers of genes simultaneously or to ...
products sold by
Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is an American supplier of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, and software services. Based in Waltham, Massachusetts, Thermo Fisher was formed through the merger of Thermo Electron and Fisher S ...
that originated with an American
biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...
research and development and manufacturing company of the same name. The
Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...
-based Affymetrix, Inc. now a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific was co-founded by Alex Zaffaroni and Stephen Fodor.
Stephen Fodor Stephen P. A. "Steve" Fodor (born in Seattle, Washington in 1953) is a scientist and businessman in the field of DNA microarray technology. He is the co-founder of Affymetrix, a company that produces DNA microarrays to screen gene expression and ...
and his group, based on their earlier development of methods to fabricate DNA microarrays using
semiconductor manufacturing Semiconductor device fabrication is the process used to manufacture semiconductor devices, typically integrated circuit (IC) chips such as modern computer processors, microcontrollers, and memory chips such as NAND flash and DRAM that are pres ...
techniques. In 1994, the company's first product under the "GeneChip" Affymetrix trademark, an
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
genotyping Genotyping is the process of determining differences in the genetic make-up (genotype) of an individual by examining the individual's DNA sequence using biological assays and comparing it to another individual's sequence or a reference sequence. ...
chip was introduced, and the company went public in 1996. After incorporation, Affymetrix grew in part by acquiring technologies from other companies, including Genetic MicroSystems (slide-based Microarrays and scanners) and Neomorphic (for
bioinformatics Bioinformatics () is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data, in particular when the data sets are large and complex. As an interdisciplinary field of science, bioinformatics combi ...
) in 2000, ParAllele Bioscience (custom
SNP genotyping SNP genotyping is the measurement of genetic variations of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between members of a species. It is a form of genotyping, which is the measurement of more general genetic variation. SNPs are one of the most common ...
),
USB Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard that establishes specifications for cables, connectors and protocols for connection, communication and power supply (interfacing) between computers, peripherals and other computers. A broad ...
/Anatrace (biochemical
reagents In chemistry, a reagent ( ) or analytical reagent is a substance or compound added to a system to cause a chemical reaction, or test if one occurs. The terms ''reactant'' and ''reagent'' are often used interchangeably, but reactant specifies a ...
) in 2008, Panomics (low to mid-plex applications) in 2008, and eBioscience (
flow cytometry Flow cytometry (FC) is a technique used to detect and measure physical and chemical characteristics of a population of cells or particles. In this process, a sample containing cells or particles is suspended in a fluid and injected into the flo ...
) in 2012. Affymetrix spun off Perlegen Sciences, as a discrete business focusing on wafer-scale genomics to characterize
population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
-
variance In probability theory and statistics, variance is the expectation of the squared deviation of a random variable from its population mean or sample mean. Variance is a measure of dispersion, meaning it is a measure of how far a set of numbers ...
of genomic markers. In January 2014, the
Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...
approved Affymetrix's postnatal blood test, CytoScan Dx Assay, looking at whole-
genome In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding ge ...
correlates of congenital abnormalities and other causes of childhood developmental delay. On January 8, 2016,
Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is an American supplier of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, and software services. Based in Waltham, Massachusetts, Thermo Fisher was formed through the merger of Thermo Electron and Fisher S ...
announced its acquisition of Affymetrix for approximately $1.3 billion, which closed on March 31, 2016.


History

Affymetrix, Inc. was spun-off from Affymax Research Institute by Alex Zaffaroni in 1993, and was eventually based in
Santa Clara, California Santa Clara (; Spanish for " Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 census, making it the eighth-most populous city in the Bay Area. Located in the southern Bay Area, the cit ...
, United States. It began as a unit in Affymax N.V. in 1991 under Fodor and his group. In the late 1980s, that group had developed methods for fabricating DNA microarrays, under the "GeneChip" Affymetrix trademark, using
semiconductor manufacturing Semiconductor device fabrication is the process used to manufacture semiconductor devices, typically integrated circuit (IC) chips such as modern computer processors, microcontrollers, and memory chips such as NAND flash and DRAM that are pres ...
techniques. The company's first product, an
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
genotyping Genotyping is the process of determining differences in the genetic make-up (genotype) of an individual by examining the individual's DNA sequence using biological assays and comparing it to another individual's sequence or a reference sequence. ...
GeneChip, was introduced in 1994 and the company went public in 1996.


Description of products

Affymetrix, Inc. made glass chips for analysis of
DNA Microarray A DNA microarray (also commonly known as DNA chip or biochip) is a collection of microscopic DNA spots attached to a solid surface. Scientists use DNA microarrays to measure the expression levels of large numbers of genes simultaneously or to ...
s called GeneChip arrays, and sold mass-produced GeneChip arrays intended to match scientifically important parts of human and other animal genomes. Manufactured using
photolithography In integrated circuit manufacturing, photolithography or optical lithography is a general term used for techniques that use light to produce minutely patterned thin films of suitable materials over a substrate, such as a silicon wafer, to protect ...
, Affymetrix's GeneChip arrays assisted researchers in quickly scanning for the presence of particular genes in a biological sample. In this area, Affymetrix was focused on oligonucleotide microarrays, which could be used to address the presence of genes through detection of specific corresponding segments of
mRNA In molecular biology, messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) is a single-stranded molecule of RNA that corresponds to the genetic sequence of a gene, and is read by a ribosome in the process of Protein biosynthesis, synthesizing a protein. mRNA is ...
. The single-use chips could be used to analyze thousands of genes in a single assay. The company also manufactured machinery for high speed analysis of biological samples, and its GeneChip Operating Software as a system for managing Affymetrix microarray data. Affymetix's competitors in the DNA Microarray business include Illumina,
GE Healthcare GE HealthCare is a subsidiary of American multinational conglomerate General Electric incorporated in New York and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. As of 2017, it is a manufacturer and distributor of diagnostic imaging agents and radiopharma ...
,
Applied Biosystems Applied Biosystems is one of various brands under the Life Technologies brand of Thermo Fisher Scientific corporation. The brand is focused on integrated systems for genetic analysis, which include computerized machines and the consumables used w ...
,
Beckman Coulter Beckman Coulter Inc. is a Danaher Corporation company that develops, manufactures, and markets products that simplify, automate and innovate complex biomedical testing. It operates in two industries: Diagnostics and Life Sciences. For more than ...
, Eppendorf Biochip Systems, and
Agilent Agilent Technologies, Inc. is an American life sciences company that provides instruments, software, services, and consumables for the entire laboratory workflow. Its global headquarters is located in Santa Clara, California. Agilent was establi ...
.


Acquisitions

Prior to its acquisition by Thermo Fisher, and its becoming a line of its products, Affymetrix, Inc. had acquired the technologies of a number of companies. It acquired Genetic MicroSystems for slide-based microarrays and scanners and Neomorphic for
bioinformatics Bioinformatics () is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data, in particular when the data sets are large and complex. As an interdisciplinary field of science, bioinformatics combi ...
, both in 2000, ParAllele Bioscience for custom
SNP genotyping SNP genotyping is the measurement of genetic variations of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) between members of a species. It is a form of genotyping, which is the measurement of more general genetic variation. SNPs are one of the most common ...
,
USB Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard that establishes specifications for cables, connectors and protocols for connection, communication and power supply (interfacing) between computers, peripherals and other computers. A broad ...
/Anatrace for biochemical
reagents In chemistry, a reagent ( ) or analytical reagent is a substance or compound added to a system to cause a chemical reaction, or test if one occurs. The terms ''reactant'' and ''reagent'' are often used interchangeably, but reactant specifies a ...
in 2008, eBioscience for
flow cytometry Flow cytometry (FC) is a technique used to detect and measure physical and chemical characteristics of a population of cells or particles. In this process, a sample containing cells or particles is suspended in a fluid and injected into the flo ...
in 2012, and Panomics in 2008 and True Materials to expand its offering of low to mid-plex applications. In 2000, Perlegen Sciences spun out from Affymetrix to focus on wafer-scale
genomics Genomics is an interdisciplinary field of biology focusing on the structure, function, evolution, mapping, and editing of genomes. A genome is an organism's complete set of DNA, including all of its genes as well as its hierarchical, three-dim ...
for massive data creation and collection required for characterizing population variance of genomic markers and expression for the drug discovery process.


FDA test approval

In January 2014, the Food and Drug Administration cleared a first-of-a-kind whole-genome postnatal blood test that can aid physicians in identifying the underlying genetic cause of developmental delay, intellectual disability, congenital anomalies, or dysmorphic features in children, where it was noted that " out 2 to 3 percent of U.S. children have some sort of intellectual disability, according to the National Institutes of Health." The test, known as CytoScan Dx Assay, was designed to diagnose these disabilities earlier to expedite appropriate care and support.


References


External links

* Detailed, multi-document resource on the originating company's history, from its perspective, featuring a detailed timeline of acquisitions, photographs of early technology, etc. {{Authority control Research support companies Biotechnology companies of the United States Companies based in Santa Clara, California Biotechnology companies established in 1992 Microarrays Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq Technology companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area 1992 establishments in California 2016 mergers and acquisitions