Demeetra AgBio has completed the full integration of Hera BioLabs, expanding Demeetra’s rights to the hyperactive Super piggyBac transposase platform and consolidating commercial access under a single organization.
The acquisition, which closed on June 1, 2025, brings Super piggyBac licensing, development, and commercial activity fully into Demeetra. As a result, Demeetra now serves as the definitive commercial source for Super piggyBac licensing across a broad range of research and commercial applications.
What this means for customers
For companies developing engineered cell lines, research tools, or commercial products, this integration removes uncertainty around licensing pathways, downstream rights, and freedom to operate. These issues have historically slowed adoption of transposase-based systems, particularly in regulated or commercial environments.
Super piggyBac is a proprietary, non-viral transposase platform developed through protein engineering and protected by U.S. and international patents and trademarks. It delivers markedly higher integration efficiency and increased transgene copy number compared to wild-type piggyBac, while preserving piggyBac’s large cargo capacity and favorable integration profile. In performance comparisons, Super piggyBac demonstrates activity comparable to other hyperactive piggyBac derivatives, paired with a clean and well-defined intellectual property foundation.
“Following the acquisition of Hera BioLabs, Demeetra is now the definitive source for hyperactive Super piggyBac licensing in drug discovery and development, as well as research tools and services,” said Jack Crawford, CEO of Demeetra. “This clarity matters. Researchers and product developers can move forward with confidence knowing they are working from a clean, well-defined IP foundation with expanded rights and long-term freedom to operate.”
Licensing and platform focus
Demeetra will offer Super piggyBac licenses through multiple access models designed to support a wide range of use cases, including cell and gene therapy research and development, large-scale screening and model generation, and commercial research tools and diagnostic applications.
As part of the integration, Hera BioLabs’ in vitro services capabilities have been incorporated into Demeetra’s internal R&D operations to accelerate the development of next-generation CleanCut CHO Platform engineered host cells optimized for commercial bioprocessing. Hera BioLabs’ in vivo services have been discontinued as Demeetra sharpens its focus on scalable platform development and licensing. All Super piggyBac commercial activity is now managed directly through Demeetra.
Super piggyBac has been validated across multiple mammalian systems, including primary cells relevant to cell and gene therapy research, where its high-efficiency, non-viral integration enables robust and uniform engineered cell populations.
Organizations interested in evaluating or licensing Super piggyBac can engage directly with Demeetra to explore evaluation kits, licensing options, and available technical resources.