Qiagen

Qiagen snares sequencing tech in $60M deal

John Carroll — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 11:22:27 -0400

Qiagen has bought out the Biosystems division of Biotage, snaring new sequencing technology in a deal worth $53 million in cash and up to $7 million in milestones over the next four years. Qiagen also bought Biotage's shares in Corbett Life Science.

"Qiagen has an excellent molecular assay and also epigenetic portfolios which perfectly fits together with our PyroMark instruments," says Torben JArgensen, CEO of Biotag. "Many of our customers are Qiagen customers as well. In addition, Qiagen's technology leadership in molecular sample and assay technologies, its global reach and extensive marketing, combined with strong relationships with researchers and leading laboratories around the world, bring exciting opportunities for Biosystems. "

- here's the release for more

Related Articles:
Qiagen inks deal to buy Corbett
Digene agrees to $1.6B takeover by Qiagen (June 2007)
Qiagen acquires Genaco in $40M deal (Oct. 2006)

Cepheid cashes in on MRSA trends--for now

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 06:59:56 -0500

With cases of antibiotic-resistant MRSA multiplying and fear of the superbug rising, Cepheid was perfectly positioned when it came out with a rapid genetic screening test. Sales have soared as Cepheid has reaped the benefits of new programs that use the screening test to identify MRSA and isolate patients. But as a profile of the company in The New York Times makes clear, the test has spurred controversy over the best way to combat MRSA. Rather than test and isolate patients, critics contend hospitals would be better off if they stuck with hospital-wide campaigns to ward off the bug with regular hand washing campaigns and other such tactics. Meanwhile, as Times scribe Andrew Pollack points out, companies such as Gen-Probe, Roche and Qiagen are advancing their own tests. Cepheid may not have this market to itself very much longer.

- read the article from the New York Times

Related Articles:
Cepheid acquires Sangtec Molecular in $27M deal. Report
Clues shed light on fighting lethal MRSA strain. Report
Study finds alarming spread of MRSA. Report

ALSO NOTED: Seattle Genetics to raise cash; Biocancell IIb trial approved;and much more...

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 06:59:50 -0500

> Seattle Genetics plans to raise cash by selling 10 million shares of its stock. Report

> The FDA has given Biocancell Therapeutics an OK to continue a Phase IIb trial on a new bladder cancer drug. Release

> Teva is exploring the possible sale of its animal health division. Release

> Qiagen says that it has won an antitrust ruling in a patent lawsuit with Third Wave Technologies. Release

> Adventrx Pharmaceuticals announced that ANX-530 demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in injection site reactions when compared to Navelbine. Release

> Sanofi and P&G say a collaborative development program for a 150 mg, once-monthly dose of the osteoporosis drug risedronate proved noninferior when compared with a 5 mg daily dose of the drug in a late-stage study. Release

> Is fibromyalgia an ill-gotten label that could only benefit drug companies? Or is it a real disease that needs treatment? Judging by the abrupt rise in prescriptions for the Pfizer drug Lyrica since it was approved for fibromyalgia treatment in June, it's real. But doctors are still arguing. Report

> In an interview with the Financial Times, Johnson & Johnson CEO Bill Weldon (photo) admits to a fascination with technology. Report

> The gig is up, the news is out. Merck and Schering-Plough announced the results of its big ENHANCE trial this morning. Report

And Finally... A UK study led by researchers at Cardiff University suggests that a chemical first found on Easter Island could treat the genetic disorder tuberous sclerosis, which causes tumors to grow in many of the organs of the body. Release

Qiagen acquires Genaco in $40M deal

Sun, 29 Oct 2006 19:01:34 -0500

Qiagen has acquired Huntsville, AL-based Genaco Biomedical Products for $22 million in cash plus shares. The deal also includes up to $18 million in milestone payments. The deal gives Qiagen ownership of Genaco's expertise in multiplexing technology for diagnostics work. In multiplexing, a diagnostic test screens for more than 10 targets when patients present symptoms that could be attributed to a variety of causes. Multiplexing, for example, could be used to test for hospital acquired infections.

"We believe that multiplexed molecular diagnostic testing is increasingly attractive due to current trends in molecular diagnostics and research, where identifying pathogens and disease markers against a broad panel of potential markers in a quick and in a cost efficient manner is developing into a significant need," said Peer M. Schatz, Qiagen's CEO.

- here's the release on the deal

Related Article:
Qiagen enters deal to buy Gentra Systems. Report

DEALS: Thermo Electron buys Fisher Scientific International for $10.6B

Wed, 10 May 2006 20:01:32 -0400

Thermo Electron buys Fisher Scientific International for $10.6B

DEALS
WHO	WITH	WHAT	SCOOP
Thermo Electron	Fisher Scientific International	$10.6B buyout	Thermo Electron has agreed to buy Fisher Scientific International in a $10.6 billion stock deal, creating a major force in the laboratory supply business.
Merck	GlycoFi and Abmaxis	$480M buyout	Drug giant Merck has acquired two biotechs: GlycoFi for $400M and Abmaxis for $80 million.
Biogen Idec	Conforma Therapeutics	$150M buyout, $100M development deal	Biogen Idec is paying $150M up front to buy Conforma Therapeutics and will pay up to $100Mmore based on the success of Conforma's pipeline of cancer therapies.
Qiagen	Gentra Systems	$38M buyout	The Dutch molecular diagnostics company Qiagen has struck a deal to buy Minneapolis-based Gentra Systems for $38M in cash.
Atrium Biotechnologies	Amisol	$6M buyout	Atrium Biotechnologies is buying personal care products maker Amisol for $6M.
Human Genome Sciences	BioMed Realty	$425 million sale/leaseback deal	HGS has inked a $425M sale/leaseback deal with BioMed Realty on its lab, manufacturing and headquarters facilities.
AstraZeneca	Abraxis BioScience	$200M promotion deal, $350M sale	The companies will share the promotional rights to the cancer drug Abraxane. AZ also announced it will sell its anesthetic and analgesic products to Abraxane for $350M.
SkyePharma	Kos Pharmaceuticals	$165M licensing deal	SkyePharma has inked a $165M licensing deal with Kos Pharmaceuticals for the U.S. marketing rights to Flutiform for asthma. SkyePharma has been seeking a partner on the drug for three years.
Astellas Pharma	Ilypsa	$92M licensing deal	Astellas will pay $92M for the Japanese rights to Ilypsa for a Phase I experimental drug for hyperphosphatemia.
Astellas Pharma	FibroGen	$465M development deal	Astellas will pay $465M in developmental milestones for two of FibroGen's experimental drugs and invest $50M in FibroGen.
Akorn	Fidia Farmaceutici	Development deal	Akorn has signed a deal with Italy's Fidia Farmaceutici to develop four ANDA products.
PPD	PDL BioPharma	Development deal	PPD has struck a deal to develop biomarkers for PDL BioPharma.
Pfizer	Monogram Biosciences	$25M investment	Pfizer will invest $25M into Monogram Biosciences and will collaborate on Monogram's Co-Receptor Tropism Assay.
PerkinElmer	Spectral Genomics	Acquisition	PerkinElmer has acquired the screening and diagnostics company Spectral Genomics for an undisclosed amount.
Sigma-Aldrich	Iropharm	Acquisition	Sigma-Aldrich has acquired Iropharm's custom chemical synthesis facility in Ireland.

Qiagen inks deal to buy Gentra Systems

Wed, 03 May 2006 20:01:35 -0400

The Dutch molecular diagnostics company Qiagen has struck a deal to buy Minneapolis-based Gentra Systems for $38 million in cash. Gentra is a supplier of non-solid phase nucleic acid purification products. "Gentra is a well established leader in nucleic acid purification consumables and automation for important niche markets such as biobanking and DNA archiving, where larger sample volumes and long term stability are important for customers," said Qiagen CEO Peer M. Schatz.

- here's the release on the buyout

C&L: XTL Biopharmaceuticals names Ron Bentsur CEO

Tue, 03 Jan 2006 19:01:32 -0500

XTL Biopharmaceuticals has named Ron Bentsur as CEO of XTL Biopharmaceuticals. Mr. Bentsur is currently Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, where he is vice president for finance and investor relations, a job he will continue to carry out for a transitional period.

Vyteris Holdings has named Timothy J. McIntyre as its new CEO and member of the board. Mr. McIntyre succeeds Vincent De Caprio, Ph.D., who will step down as CEO and board member. Mr. McIntyre previously served as partner and managing member of CMS-Health.

Lannett announced that Arthur P. Bedrosian, currently the company's president, has also been appointed CEO and director, succeeding William Farber, who remains chairman.

Immunicon has elected Byron D. Hewett, currently president and COO, as president and CEO. Prior to joining Immunicon, he served as senior VP of sales and marketing and general manager, North America, for Qiagen. Edward L. Erickson, currently chairman and CEO of Immunicon, will serve as executive chairman through March 31, 2006. Thereafter, Mr. Erickson will remain as chairman of the board in a non-executive capacity at least until the next annual meeting of shareholders.

Genmab announced today the appointment of Annarie Lyles, Ph.D., as head of business development. Dr. Lyles was previously appointed VP of business development at Genmab in June 2005. Dr. Lyles replaces Dr. Ernst Schweizer, who has retired from this position. Dr. Schweizer remains a member of the Genmab board of directors.

Jeffrey Tobias, M.D., has joined NeurogesX as chief medical officer. Most recently, Dr. Tobias was principal at Aquila Consulting Group.

Nastech Pharmaceutical has named Philip Ranker as CFO and corporate secretary. Prior to joining Nastech, he served as the director of finance for ICOS and in various financial management positions at Sanofi-Aventis, including senior finance director.

QLT announced that Bill Newell will step down as senior VP and chief business officer. He has accepted a new position with a private biotech company in the Bay Area.

American Bioscience and American Pharmaceutical Partners announced the appointment of Barry Flannelly, Pharm.D, MBA, to the newly created position of global VP sales and marketing, Abraxis Oncology, APP's proprietary drug sales and marketing division. Prior to joining APP, Flannelly served as the global brand leader at Novartis Oncology for the breast cancer drug, Femara.

Amylin Pharmaceuticals announced that Dr. James R. Gavin III was elected to the company's board of directors. Dr. Gavin currently serves as clinical professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine and is executive VP for clinical affairs for Healing Our Village.

Xanthus Life Sciences has elected Richard W. Dugan to the board of directors. Mr. Dugan retired from Ernst & Young in September of 2002.

Integrated BioPharma has appointed General James T. Hill, USA (Ret.), as a director of InB: Biotechnologies, its wholly-owned subsidiary. At the time of his retirement from active duty in November of 2004, General Hill was the Commander of the United States Southern Command.

Barrier Therapeutics has appointment of Edward L. Erickson to its board of directors. Mr. Erickson has also been appointed as a member of the company's Governance and Nominating Committee. Prior to joining Immunicon, Mr. Erickson was the director of Tapestry Pharmaceuticals Megabios.

deCODE Genetics today announced that Jean-Francois Formela will be leaving the company's board of directors. Dr. Formela has served on deCODE's board since the formation of the company in 1996 and plans to devote his time to a new Atlas fund.

DEALS: Corgentech, AlgoRx to merge pipelines

Wed, 28 Sep 2005 20:01:32 -0400

Corgentech, AlgoRx to merge pipelines

DEALS
WHO	WITH	WHAT	SCOOP
Corgentech	AlgoRx Pharmaceuticals	Merger/stock swap	The combined company will have four products in its pipeline, including AlgoRx's portfolio of pain management drug candidates.
Celtic Pharma	Neurobological Technologies	Drug acquisition	Celtic gains control of Xerecept, in Phase III for swelling associated with brain tumors.
Clinical Data	Icoria	$12.5 million acquisition	The buyout is being billed as a combination of Icoria's biomarker discovery platform with Clinical Data's molecular diagnostics business model.
Qiagen	Shenzhen PG Biotech	Acquisition	The acquisition will expand Qiagen's position as a provider of molecular diagnostics solutions to OEM partners and customers in Asia.
Pharmagene	Asterand	Stock swap merger	The combination will create an expanded approach to human tissue supply and human tissue based research services.
Daiichi Pharmaceutical	Daiichi Suntory Pharma	Acquisition	The deal gives Daiichi control of a joint venture it created with Suntory as it works to beef up its financial strength.
Esprit Pharma	Metagen Pharmaceuticals	Acquisition	Esprit gains control of PROSED(R) EC, a urinary analgesic/ antispasmodic/antiseptic.

ALSO NOTED: Neurologix touts Phase I results; QLT CEO resigns; BioLineRx gains $9M in new funding; FDA to miss action date on H

Sun, 25 Sep 2005 20:00:50 -0400

> Neurologix of Fort Lee, New Jersey, reported positive interim results for its Phase I trial of its gene therapy for Parkinson's. Release

> QLT CEO Paul Hastings has resigned just days after its anti-blindness therapy failed in clinical trials. Report

> Israel's BioLineRx has lined up $9 million in funding. Release

> San Diego-based Halozyme Therapeutics says that regulators at the FDA have told the company that it cannot meet a planned action date for Hylenex. Release

> Emisphere of Tarrytown, New York, has lined up $15 million in new financing from its largest shareholder. Release

> Qiagen of The Netherlands will buy all outstanding shares of Shenzhen PG Biotech. Release

> BioNovo has moved its operations to a new facility in Emeryville, California. Release

> The Florida Sun-Sentinel looks at the recent trials and tribulations of the generic drug maker Andrx. Story

> Canada's Viron Therapeutics has begun a Phase II trial of its lead anti-inflammatory drug, VT-111. Release

And Finally… Bees kill more people in the U.S. than any other animal, and health experts believe that inadequate treatment at emergency centers may be a leading reason why. Article

DEALS: Qiagen buys key assets

Wed, 03 Aug 2005 20:01:32 -0400

Qiagen buys key assets

DEALS
WHO	WITH	WHAT	SCOOP
Altana	Eckhart	$768 million buyout	Once the deal is complete, Altana will add Eckhart's chemicals and pigments unit to its chemicals division and spin the venture off as a separate company.
Qiagen	SuNyx	asset buyout	Qiagen buys technology that examines sample preparation by leveraging unique, nanotechnology-based surface structures.
Qiagen	LumiCyte	asset buyout	LumiCyte has been developing capability that dramatically increases the limits of detection achievable through mass spectroscopy.

Qiagen snares key assets of two biotech companies

Sun, 31 Jul 2005 20:01:36 -0400

Dutch biotech Qiagen is buying up the key assets of two biotech firms for up to $18 million. The bulk of that goes to buy the assets of LumiCyte in Fremont, California. LumiCyte makes protein analysis tools. Qiagen is also buying the bioanalytical assets of SuNyx, a German biotech that markets bioanalytic solutions to the biopharma industry.

- read this press release and this press release for more on both

DEALS: Bausch & Lomb expands China operations

Wed, 06 Jul 2005 20:01:32 -0400

Bausch & Lomb expands China operations

DEALS
WHO	WITH	WHAT	SCOOP
Bausch & Lomb	Sino Biopharmaceutical	Buying 55% interest in Chinese ophthalmic unit	Bausch & Lomb expands its presence in the Chinese market.
Techne	Fortron Bio Science/BiosPacific	$20M buyout	Techne gains a developer and manufacturer of monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies, antigens and other biological reagents.
Qiagen	Nextal Biotechnology	$14.2M Buyout	Qiagen gains a provider of proprietary sample preparation tools which make protein crystallization more accessible.
Torrent Pharma	Pfizer	Generic division buyout	India's Torrent acquires Heumann Pharma Generics of Germany for an undisclosed amount.
Takara Bio	Becton, Dickinson and Company	Acquiring BD's Clontech division	Clontech develops, produces and markets biological products to the life science market.
Blairex Laboratories	Zila	Brand line sale, $10.3M	Blairex gains the Zilactin brand of OTC lip and oral care products.
Millipore	Microsafe	$9.3 million buyout	Millipore adds contract lab to its list of assets.

Qiagen to acquire Nextal Biotechnology

Wed, 29 Jun 2005 20:01:35 -0400

Qiagen has agreed to buy Canada's Nextal Biotechnology for up to $14.2 million, with $9.7 million in cash and the rest paid out according to predetermined milestones. Nextal has developed products that "simplify the process of sample preparation of proteins for subsequent crystallographic analysis."

- read this press release for more

DEALS: Affymetrix lands ParAllele acquisition

Wed, 08 Jun 2005 20:01:32 -0400

Affymetrix lands ParAllele acquisition

DEALS
WHO	WITH	WHAT	SCOOP
Affymetrix	ParAllele BioScience	$120M buyout	When used with Affymetrix GeneChip technology, ParAllele's proprietary assay effectively gives researchers a powerful "molecular microscope" for examining the entire genome.
NBTY	Solgar Vitamin and Herb	$115M buyout	Solgar manufactures and distributes nutritional supplements, including multivitamins, minerals, botanicals and specialty formulas.
Qiagen	artus Gesellschaft	$39.2M buyout	Artus is a leader in PCR-based molecular diagnostic tests for pathogenenic, genotyping and pharmacogenomic testing.
Chromos Molecular Systems	Targeted Molecules	Acquisition, stock and notes	Targeted Molecules has been focused on the research and development of two antibody product candidates for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and acute thrombosis.

ALSO NOTED: Qiagen acquires artus; Centocor gains priority review; Inverness buying diagnostic assets; and much more...

Mon, 30 May 2005 20:00:50 -0400

> Qiagen has acquired Germany's artus, which develops detection systems, for $39 million. Story

> The FDA has granted a priority review to Centocor's Remicade for ulcerative colitis. Release

> Inverness Medical is buying diagnostic assets from Abbott for $56.5 million. Release

> USA Today examines the current push to regulate drug marketing in America. Story

> The FDA has concurred with Spectrum Pharmaceuticals IND for SPI-153 and plans a Phase I/II clinical trial for prostate cancer. Release

> India's Ranbaxy has received a tentative nod from the FDA for a new HIV drug. Story

And Finally... A new study suggests that doctors are simply not prescribing cholesterol-lowering statins as frequently as needed. Story