Provides a platform for kinetic screening which should appeal to customers who require the ability to simultaneously study the interactions of hundreds of proteins and peptides
Biacore has completed the acquisition of Flexchip system and related assets from the US company HTS Biosystems.
The acquisition, costing US$4 million in cash, will extend Biacore's product offering and is in line with the company's strategy of building on its leading global position in the field of protein interaction analysis.
Flexchip, together with the company's own array-based system that started its commercial roll out in October 2004, gives the Biacore what it calls an unrivalled position for the application of array technology in the fast emerging protein array market.
Biacore will offer solutions to meet the needs of customers working in research through to drug discovery and protein therapeutic development.
In 2004, the protein array market was estimated to be worth over $120 million and is forecast to grow to over $540 million by 2008.
Flexchip provides an open, array-based platform for kinetic screening within academia and upstream exploratory research.
The system should appeal to a wide number of customers who require the ability to simultaneously study the interactions of hundreds of proteins and peptides against a single sample.
As with all Biacore systems, Flexchip utilises the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) for label-free, real-time interaction analysis.
Biacore anticipates that, over time, this system will open up new research applications.
Customer surveys conducted by Biacore as part of the acquisition process have clearly highlighted the complementary nature of Flexchip with the company's current product offering.
All of the customers surveyed were using a Biacore product downstream of the Flexchip system.
Looking ahead, Biacore expects to be able to evolve Flexchip by applying in-house expertise, particularly in the field of surface chemistry, to develop further the product's application scope.
Flexchip complements Biacore's own array-based system, currently in the initial stages of commercialisation.
This system provides quantitative, multiplexed screening in an open format as demanded further downstream for applications run in proteomics institutes, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.
Biacore believes that Flexchip is an important addition to the its business and will enhance its long-term sales and earnings growth.
Erik Wallden, president and CEO of Biacore, said: "I am delighted that we have been able to conclude this acquisition which will strengthen our overall product portfolio.
"The combination of Flexchip with our own existing portfolio will allow us to leverage our expertise in protein interaction analysis to become the leading player in the rapidly emerging protein array market.
"By targeting different customer groups with varying application needs I am sure that we will be able to benefit from the growing opportunities that will appear over the next five to ten years.
"Flexchip has already been introduced to the market and we are particularly encouraged by the positive customer feed back regarding the quality of the product and its ease of use.
"The feedback we received has reinforced our view of the potential for both of these complementary array products that we can now offer".
Greg Freitag, CEO of HTS Biosystems, said: "HTS is excited to place its first developed product, the Flexchip kinetic analysis system, with the world leader in protein characterisation and surface plasmon resonance technologies.
"Our grating coupled array based technology is a synergistic fit with Biacore's products and their knowledge and capabilities in this area will bring continued success."
