At its press conference announcing its purchase of Navigenics (see page 2), Life Technologies provided details of its plan to grow its diagnostics business. Ronnie Andrews, president of Medical Sciences, cited the company’s qPCR, FISH probes and antibody products as among the product lines that will contribute to its diagnostic offerings. As an example of the current presence of the company’s products in clinical labs, he stated that over 7,000 hospital labs currently have a Life Technologies qPCR system. As for sequencing, he estimated the transition of whole-genome sequencing to the clinic to be about three years to five years away.

The Medical Sciences business will utilize Life Technologies’ research technologies to offer solutions for the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of patients. An additional component of the business will be high-value content, which will be added through partnerships with life science and pharmaceutical companies, internal development, and acquisitions, such as its purchase of Pinpoint Genomics (see page 2), and internal development. Information science will also be a key component of the business and one to which the Navigenics acquisition contributes.