Ginkgo Bioworks And Acies Bio Partner To Expand Global Access To High-Performance Aspergillus Niger Strains For Protein Production

Licensing collaboration combines Ginkgo's engineered fungal chassis strains with Acies Bio's end-to-end strain development, bioprocess scale-up and manufacturing platform, giving customers a turnkey path from strain to scaled bioprocess

Ginkgo Bioworks and Acies Bio, a European biotechnology company specializing in microbial strain development, bioprocess development, scale-up, and manufacturing, today announced a partnership that will combine one of Ginkgo's most versatile microbial "factories" with Acies to support companies around the world.

At the center of the deal is a specially engineered strain of Aspergillus niger — a common, food-safe fungus that industry has relied on for decades. When fed sugar, it produces proteins and enzymes that end up in a host of industrial and consumer applications including edible ingredients, dietary supplements, more effective laundry detergents, healthier animal feed, and a new generation of sustainably made foods.

Ginkgo has fine-tuned this microbe in three ways: it's easier and cheaper to grow in large tanks, it no longer produces unwanted natural byproducts, and it's "cleaner" — meaning it doesn't produce unwanted natural byproducts. These improvements can translate into higher output, lower manufacturing costs, and a safer, more consistent product.

Microbes like Aspergillus niger are the product of Ginkgo's engineering platform and powered by Ginkgo's autonomous lab, the largest of its kind in the world. That scale and automation lets Ginkgo test large numbers of genetic variations of microbes in parallel, surpassing the amount that a traditional lab bench could manage, and narrow in on the combination of traits that optimize manufacturing.

Through its SmartRoute integration, Acies Bio brings the complementary capabilities required to rapidly translate Ginkgo's microbial chassis strains into customer-specific production systems. Its teams can introduce and optimize target protein expression, develop downstream and upstream processes, validate performance, and scale production from laboratory development to industrial manufacturing inside Acies Bio’s own biomanufacturing facility with up to 30 m3 fermentation volumes. This gives customers a single development path instead of requiring them to coordinate strain access, process development, and scale-up separately.

The collaboration combines Ginkgo’s engineered fungal chassis strains with Acies Bio’s strain development, bioprocess scale-up and manufacturing platform, creating an integrated path from production strain to commercial process.

"Our Aspergillus niger platform strains were built to take friction out of industrial protein production — low viscosity, low protease activity, and inactivated mycotoxin pathways from the start," said Jill Bradshaw, General Manager of Ginkgo's Microbial Solutions business unit. "By pairing these chassis strains with Acies Bio's development and manufacturing expertise, we can put a proven starting point in the hands of customers who want to move quickly from concept to scaled production."

"Ginkgo's chassis strains are an excellent foundation, and our team with 20 years of experience in industrial strain and process development knows how to turn a strong starting strain into a robust, scalable bioprocess," said Štefan Fujs, Director of Acies Bio. "This collaboration lets us offer customers a complete path, from strain access through process development and manufacturing, without needing to build fungal engineering capabilities in-house."

Ginkgo's Aspergillus niger chassis strains are now available to Acies Bio customers under license from Ginkgo Bioworks.

About Acies Bio
Acies Bio d.o.o., headquartered in Ljubljana, Slovenia, is a biotechnology CDMO specializing in the development of innovative, complete solutions across microbial biotechnology, synthetic biology, and precision fermentation. The company’s SmartoRoute solution offers end-to-end R&D capabilities through scale-up bioprocesses, proprietary chassis strains, and efficient project management. For more information, visit aciesbio.com.

About Ginkgo Bioworks
Ginkgo Bioworks builds the tools that make biology easier to engineer for everyone. The company offers autonomous laboratories that replace manual laboratory work with robotics in the lab, greatly improving the productivity of scientists. Ginkgo's in-house autonomous lab is also available as a "Cloud Lab" through our Datapoints and Solutions contract research services. For more information, visit ginkgobioworks.com.