Takara Bio Inc. is committed to improving the human condition through biotechnology. Starting as the biomedical business of Takara Shuzo, a fermentation and beverage company founded in 1925 (now Takara Holdings Company, Inc.), Takara Bio has focused on developing research tools for the life sciences, cell and gene therapy technologies, and nutraceuticals since its launch in 1967. The three business units of TAKARA BIO INC are: • Genetic Engineering Research - manufactures and sells research reagents and scientific instruments used by biotechnology researchers worldwide, as well as contract research services. • Agribio - produces and sells health food products whose functionality have been proven by biotechnology, and conducts a mushroom business based on technologies for large-scale mushroom production. • Gene Medicine - conducts clinical development projects to work toward commercializing cell and gene therapies centered on a highly efficient gene transduction method and a lymphocyte expansion-culture system, both using RetroNectin® reagent. The global headquarters of Takara Bio are in Otsu, Shiga, Japan. In 2005 the Company acquired Clontech Laboratories, Inc. (Mountain View, CA). This acquisition further strengthened Takara Bio’s product offering for researchers in gene discovery, regulation, and function. With business units in Japan, China, Europe, Korea, India, and the US, Takara Bio provides global leadership in the life science reagent and instrument market.
