USB Corporation offers life science products for use in basic research, drug discovery and molecular diagnostics. The company history reaches back to the 1980s, as United States Biochemical, known for Sequenase DNA Polymerase

DNA polymerase

A DNA polymerase is an enzyme that helps catalyze in the polymerization of deoxyribonucleotides into a DNA strand. DNA polymerases are best known for their feedback role in DNA replication, in which the polymerase "reads" an intact DNA strand as a template and uses it to synthesize the new strand....

, a genetically modified enzyme used to develop the first easy-to-use DNA sequencing products. Today, USB focuses on molecular biology

Molecular biology

Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...

 and biochemical products for DNA amplification (PCR), purification, cloning

Cloning

Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...

, protein studies and RNA analysis.

USB was acquired by Affymetrix

Affymetrix

Affymetrix is a company that manufactures DNA microarrays; it is based in Santa Clara, California, United States. The company was founded by Dr. Stephen Fodor in 1992. It began as a unit in Affymax N.V...

at the start of 2008.