April 22, is Earth Day: A globally recognized annual event to demonstrate support for environmental protection and promote sustainability. Now, more than ever is the time for daring courage to align with this year’s theme: Invest in Our Planet.
Promega Corporation has been named among the best places to work in the USA with a 2022 Top Workplaces USA Award. The Top Workplaces USA list, announced on February 1, is a program run by research firm Energage to recognize high-performing companies based solely on employee engagement surveys. The surveys measure the level of connection, motivation, and commitment employees feel for their companies.
Energage believes that improving engagement can directly impact performance, innovation, retention, and talent attraction. The 2022 USA winner’s list is calculated by comparing the survey’s research-based statements to predict high performance against industry benchmarks.
I am able to perform science in an environment that makes me feel as though I’m growing as a researcher…
—Promega Employee Survey Response
Promega also earned a “culture badge” for Work-Life Balance. Employee feedback showed this factor to be the company’s strongest culture driver. Culture badges are earned for scores that are in the top 25% of organizations in the same benchmark.
Promega Director of HR Organizational Development, Darbie Miller points out how much Promega employees value the flexibility to flourish both at work and at home. “It is meaningful to all of us that employees continue to experience a culture that prioritizes flexibility to balance work and personal life. We are honored to receive this recognition and also to understand how to continue to evolve the employee experience at Promega.”
My co-workers care, I do work that makes me feel empowered, and I have the flexibility to be a real person with a real life.
—Promega Employee Survey Response
Promega offers welcoming careers where employees can stay, contribute and grow. We challenge our employees to change the world, to have more fun, to bring their full selves to work— in short, to take on a career that means more. At Promega, our employees do just that. Here, employees play a role in solving the world’s most pressing problems, experience camaraderie, gain satisfaction and get reward. We challenge ourselves to improve our local communities, to create an open, inviting and inclusive culture, to foster a work environment where collaborative givers, continuous learners, and ambitious go-getters thrive.
Our employees make an award like this possible, and we are grateful for the talent they bring every day. With an eye toward the future, we will continue to build on a culture that values science, sustainable business, and human well-being. We believe that every one of our employees has the potential to make a meaningful difference. And they do.
“It [my job] allows me to contribute to the betterment of mankind, the advancement of science, and success of my friends.”
—Promega Employee Survey Response
It [my role] allows me to be my natural, gifted, independent self while accomplishing the greater goals of the company and being part of something spectacular.
—Promega Employee Survey Response
Promega is a leader in providing innovative solutions and technical support to the life sciences industry. We are committed to science advancement for improving life in the global community. With branches in16 countries and over 50 global distributors serving over 100 countries
Our tools and technologies support a wide range of work. This includes cell biology, protein analysis, drug development, human identification, and molecular diagnostics. Promega products are used in labs for academic and government research, forensics, pharmaceuticals, clinical diagnostics, and agricultural and environmental testing.
Discover a career at Promega that will give you the opportunity you need to make a difference.
Are you a student who is exploring possible careers outside of academia? Industry has many opportunities for scientists. Read some of our careers blogs to learn more.
Researchers looking for new chemistry for Sanger sequencing need look no further than the ProDye™ Terminator Sequencing System, developed by Promega for use in capillary electrophoresis instruments. Sanger sequencing, or dye-terminator sequencing, has been the gold standard of DNA analysis for over 40 years and is a method commonly used in labs around the world. Even as new technologies emerge, Sanger sequencing remains the most cost-effective method for sequencing shorter pieces of DNA.
This summer, Dr. Anette Leue, Director of Digital Marketing and PR Promega GmbH, represented Promega Corporation in Sustainability Day activities sponsored by Smart Lab Connects. Dr. Leue presented Promega Corporation’s corporate responsibility activities and joined a panel discussion about global responsibility with representatives from Eppendorf, Max Planck Sustainability Network, and NIUB Sustainability Consultants.
As the Sustainability Day activities progressed, what became apparent is that calls for sustainable business growth are coming from all directions. Customers of life sciences companies are asking, “what are you doing to be a responsible company”? And, employees also are asking the same question of their employers. This interest sustainability and global responsibility by customers, employees and local communities is bringing into sharp focus the activities of companies to be good corporate citizens. Sustainability and global responsibility programs are no longer nice extras for life science companies, but rather are requirements for doing business.
Continue reading “How to Commit to Global Responsibility with Local Accountability”“Sustainability is not a “nice to have”, but something that should be intrinsically implemented in the companies.”
Dr. Anette Leue
The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed the entire conference and tradeshow industry. Although plans for many in-person conferences were paused, this month the 32nd International Symposium on Human Identification offered the best of both worlds: an in-person symposium in Orlando, Florida (September 12–16), and a virtual conference where registrants could view the session recordings online. At the symposium, exhibits and poster presentations offered attendees the opportunity to reconnect in person after long absences, while various networking events gave attendees a chance to catch up and socialize.
As usual, workshops were held before and after the main symposium. In a sign of the changing times, Rachel Oefelein and Tarah Nieroda (DNA Labs International) presented a talk on the unique challenges and opportunities associated with virtual courtroom testimony.
The weekend before the symposium was marked by an event of great significance across the world: the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the attempt on the U.S. Capitol that was thwarted by the brave sacrifice of the passengers and crew on board United Airlines Flight 93. In particular, the DNA forensics community was reminded of how much technology has evolved over the years, in the efforts—still ongoing—to identify the victims of the attacks.
Continue reading “The 32nd International Symposium on Human Identification: Remembering Past Challenges and Developing a Path Forward”Lynch syndrome is an inherited condition that significantly increases the risk of developing colorectal and other cancers, often at a young age. People with this condition have close to an 80% chance of developing colorectal cancer in their lifetime. It is the most common form of hereditary colon cancer and causes roughly 3% of all colon cancers. The mutations that cause Lynch syndrome are inherited in an autosomal dominant manner— meaning you only need to have one copy of the gene with a Lynch-associated mutation to be at an increased risk.
It is estimated that 1 in every 279 people have inherited a Lynch-associated mutation (1). Yet despite this prevelence, Lynch syndrome is not well known and ~95% of those with the syndrome don’t know they have it (1).
Lynch syndrome is caused by mutations that result in the loss of function of one of the four different major mismatch repair proteins. These proteins act as “proof readers” that correct errors in the DNA sequence that can occur during DNA replication. To determine if Lynch syndrome is likely, simple screening tests can be performed on tumor (cancer) tissue to indicate if more specific genetic testing should be considered. One such screening looks for high levels of microsatellite instability (MSI) in the tumor tissue. High microsatellite instability (MSI-H) in tumor tissue is a functional indication that one or more of the major mismatch repair proteins is not functioning properly.
For those who develop colorectal cancer at an early age or have a family history (immediate family member or multiple family members with colorectal cancer or polyps), screening for Lynch syndrome can offer valuable insight for both patients and their family, as well as for their healthcare provider.
The newly released Promega OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System is an FDA-cleared IVD Medical Device and can be used to determine the MSI status of colorectal cancer tumors to aid in identifying those who should be further tested for Lynch syndrome. The OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System builds upon the company’s fifteen year history of supporting global cancer researchers with one of the leading standard tests for MSI status detection. The OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System offers an improved formulation while using the same five markers that have become the gold standard for MSI detection in the research community and is referenced in over 140 peer review publications (2,3).
The OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System is designed to provide physicians with a functional, molecular measurement of the level of DNA mismatch repair deficiency demonstrated within their patient’s colorectal cancer tumor. MSI testing is recommended to identify candidates for further diagnostic testing for Lynch syndrome. (2–4). The System is part of a broader workflow that includes DNA extraction from FFPE tissue samples, quantitation of DNA, amplification of specific microsatellite markers using multiplex PCR, fragment separation by capillary electrophoresis, and data analysis and interpretation software. The OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System is available in certain countries. Visit the OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System webpage to learn more.
Promega previously announced a CE-marked version of the OncoMate™ MSI Dx Analysis System in France, Germany, Austria, Poland, UK, Ireland, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway.
For more information about MSI solutions available from Promega visit our Microsatellite Instability Testing webpage.
This post was written by guest blogger Iain Ronald, Director Academic/Government Market Segment at Promega.
My back story is similar to most of you reading this blog, high school education, undergraduate degree then onto a postgraduate degree. However, over 25 years ago during my undergraduate study, I was fortunate enough to work in the lab of Professor Ray Waters studying DNA damage in S. cerevisiae as a model organism and at the time PCR was cutting-edge technology and the PCR license was in full effect. However, there was one company that was fighting the good fight to democratize PCR for the good of the scientific community, Promega.
I became enamored with Promega then, and the next steps in my career were taken with a view to working at this company who, for all intents and purposes, seemed to really care about the progression of science beyond self-aggrandizement.
Now that I am working at Promega in a position where I can bring benefit to our academic community, I have pondered what I can do to equal the disruptive attitude I observed in this company all those years ago when they were fighting the then “big tech” for the enablement of the scientific community.
Alternatives to animal testing have long been explored when it comes to studying the safety of various chemical compounds for use in food, medicine and cosmetics. With the advent of three-dimensional (3D) cell culture to create organoids, more relevant human organoid models are being explored as one way to provide safe and effective compound testing while minimizing the need for testing in animals. The international project Physiologically Anchored Tools for Realistic nanOmateriaL hazard aSsessment (PATROLS) led by the Swansea University Medical School aims to establish a battery of innovative, next-generation safety testing tools that can more accurately predict the effects of engineered nanomaterial (ENM) exposure in humans and the environment.
One project being researched by Samantha Llewellyn, a research assistant at Swansea University, is developing predictive physiologically relevant 3D liver models for ENM safety assessment. By having a model to evaluate realistic ENM exposures, a researcher can study liver function, hepatic metabolism and microtissue cell viability after acute (24 hours) or prolonged (several days) exposure. A microtissue model for assessing ENM hepatotoxicity needs to mimic primary hepatocytes and be amenable to assays used to test cell viability and metabolism.
The right tools for testing this 3D liver model include the bioluminescent-based CellTiter-Glo® 3D Viability and P450-Glo® Assays. When creating organoids, having reagents that can penetrate to the center of the dense and complex 3D liver spheroids is important so that the cell viability readout encompasses the entire microtissue. The CellTiter-Glo® 3D Viability Assay accomplishes this task, providing accurate assessment of 3D tissue cell health. Measuring cytochrome P450 (CYP450) activity is necessary for studying liver function. The P450-Glo® Assays have the flexibility to assess CYP450 activity while preserving the liver spheroids; thus, researchers can gather more data from a single experiment.
The importance of Samantha Llewellyn’s research as part of PATROLs is establishing a 3D liver model that could evaluate realistic ENM exposures and reduce the need for animal testing. Bioluminescent assays for assessing cell health and liver enzyme function are necessary to reach this goal.
To learn more about the last 30 years of bioluminescent innovations and the discoveries they’ve enabled, please visit our 30th anniversary celebration page.
Each year, the International Forum on Consciousness draws thought leaders from around the world to explore important, and often challenging, topics related to the exploration of consciousness. The theme for this year, Consciousness of Connection: Awakening from Despair to Awe, is an invitation to broaden curiosity about connection and take a closer look at the variety of connections that we forge in our lives.
Participants will examine the kinds of connections that transcend our individual selves and reach our inner desire to be part of an interconnected world, perhaps to transform our current sense of the individual, community, and society, from independent to interdependent. More specifically, the Forum will examine connection across the primary aspects of our lives with:
We recently announced the opening of our newly constructed Kornberg Center research and development facility on our Fitchburg, WI campus. While we grow our company through new facilities around the globe, it is vitally important that we expand our sustainability efforts along the way. We are committed to preserving and improving our environment for a thriving future.
Incorporating sustainability best practices from around the world is key to our long-term planning. Each new Promega facility is designed to meet ambitious sustainability objectives, and innovations incorporated in one project inform the next. We also align projects to meet United Nations Global Compact Sustainable Development Goals. All of our locations collectively contribute to minimizing the effect we have on our environment.
Here are a few of many sustainability initiatives Promega practices around the world:
Continue reading “Growing Through Sustainability Sensibilities”