OpGen raised $23.6 million in equity financing in September in a round led by CHL Medical Partners, Highland Capital Partners and Versant Ventures. In-Q-Tel, a Central Intelligence Agency–launched investment firm, made a strategic investment in OpGen. Base4 innovation and Harvard Medical School’s George Church have joined VisiGen Biotechnologies, 454 Life Sciences, the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution and Reveo in competing for the Archon X PRIZE for Genomics, which will award $10 million to the group that develops a system to sequence 100 human genomes in 10 days or less with an accuracy of no more than one error in every 100,000 bases sequenced at a recurring cost of no more than $10,000 per genome. VisEn Medical raised $7 million in Series B financing, led by Merck Capital Ventures and Flagship Ventures. Roche Diagnostics granted Eppendorf AG a license to use, develop and sell products based on its melting curve analysis technology, excluding in vitro diagnostics. Sequenom named John A. Fazio, former senior general practice partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers, to its Board in October. Vermillion (formerly Ciphergen Biosystems) announced that the US Patent Office reissued US Patent No. 6,734,022 for SELDI MS. In November, Helicos BioSciences named Ronald Lowy, former president and CEO of Fisher Biosciences, to its Board. Helicos BioSciences joined the Personalized Medicine Coalition. SRU Biosystems named Richard Wagner, PhD, president and CEO. He is the former executive vice president of Research for Praecis Pharmaceuticals.