Commitments and Contingencies - Additional Information (Detail) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended		12 Months Ended	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2013 USD ($) Lease	Jun. 30, 2012 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2013 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2012 USD ($) Lease	Dec. 31, 2012 Lease	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] CAD	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] Term Loan [Member] ACOA [Member] USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] Term Loan [Member] ACOA [Member] CAD	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] Term Loan [Member] Enterprise PEI [Member] USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2013 AquaBounty [Member] Term Loan [Member] Enterprise PEI [Member] CAD
Commitment And Contingencies [Line Items]
Rent expenses	$ 1,742	$ 1,229	$ 3,012	$ 2,484
Subleasing spaces					2
Number of entities under sublease agreement	1			1	2
Rental income under sublease agreement	92	10	183	64
Future rental income for the sublease agreement in 2013	182		182
Future rental income for the sublease agreement in 2014	365		365
Future rental income for the sublease agreement in 2015	152		152
Amount available under the grant for Research and Development						2,728	2,872
Claims period						5 years	5 years
Royalty on products						10.00%	10.00%
Total amount claimed						2,074
Original principal of term loans								238	250	285	300
Maturity period of term loan								2013-12	2013-12	2013-12	2013-12
Outstanding balance								13		20
AquaBounty funding						2,817	2,965
Percentage of royalty on revenues						5.20%	5.20%
Estimated balance to be paid						$ 190