Cell Imaging Company Amnis Acquired by EMD Millipore

Amnis Corp. (Seattle, WA, USA), a manufacturer of cell imaging systems, announced that the company has been acquired by EMD Millipore (Billerica, MA, USA), the life science division of Merck, KGaA (Darmstadt, Germany). The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and closing is expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2011. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Amnis generated sales of US$14 million (EUR 10 million) in 2010 and has maintained a compound annual growth rate in excess of 80% since 2005. The acquisition will allow Amnis to expand its growth potential via EMD Millipore’s global footprint, reagent expertise, and research and development (R&D) resources. The acquisition will also complement EMD Millipore’s Guava flow-cytometry product range.

David A. Basiji, cofounder and CEO of Amnis, said, “The combination of Amnis with EMD Millipore will greatly accelerate development of novel applications in imaging flow cytometry, enhance our customer support, and accelerate product development.”

William E. Ortyn, Amnis’ cofounder and president, added, “We are very pleased to become a member of the Merck, KGaA, of Germany. Together we will create and pursue compelling opportunities in both the life-science research and clinical markets.”

“The acquisition of Amnis significantly contributes to our strategy to be a leader in cellular analysis and systems biology by providing access to Amnis’ novel imaging and image analysis technology, as well as their truly unique product line of instruments that combine high-speed imaging with flow cytometry,” said Jonathan DiVincenzo, head of the bioscience business unit within EMD Millipore. “With Amnis, we acquire a business with a motivated and very talented workforce, a strong IP [intellectual property] position, and unique know-how in a strongly growing segment of the life science research market.”

Amnis develops, manufactures, and markets instrumentation for high-speed cell imaging for research and diagnostic markets. The company’s ImageStreamX and FlowSight imaging flow cytometers combine the speed and sensitivity of flow cytometry with the power of digital microscopy serving a broad spectrum of life sciences research market needs. As the only technology capable of imaging cells at high speed directly in bodily fluids, Amnis cytometers are being evaluated for unique, noninvasive diagnostic applications. Amnis was founded in 1999, it and has generated approximately 80% annualized revenue growth since release of the company’s first product in 2005. The company holds 39 issued US patents and has 55 pending patent applications covering Amnis’ architecture, subsystems, and applications for imaging both in flow and on substrates.

EMD Millipore is the life-science division of Merck, KGaA, of Germany and offers a wide range of innovative, performance products, services, and business relationships that enable customers’ success in research, development, and production of biotech and pharmaceutical drug therapies. The division has around 10,000 employees, operations in 67 countries and 2010 revenues of $2.2 billion. EMD Millipore is known as Merck Millipore outside of the United States and Canada.

Merck is a global pharmaceutical and chemical company with total revenues of EUR 9.3 billion in 2010. Merck’s operating activities come under the umbrella of Merck, KGaA, in which the Merck family holds an approximately 70% interest and shareholders own the remaining approximately 30%.

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