Santa Clara, CA 9/25/18—Agilent Technologies has agreed to acquire ACEA Biosciences for $250 million in cash. ACEA Biosciences supplies the NovoCyte benchtop flow cytometer, including a clinical system, as well as the xCELLigence instruments for monitoring of cell growth, cell function, and cellular responses. “ACEA represents a unique opportunity for Agilent to expand its team and broaden its portfolio with highly complementary technology, increasing the relevance and impact we can have with our customers in the cell analysis space,” stated Todd Christian, vice president and general manager of Agilent’s Cell Analysis Division. “We share the same passion around the need for and innovation of live-cell, kinetic and label-free approaches to cell analysis extending beyond traditional end-point measurements.” Based in California, ACEA Biosciences also has manufacturing and R&D operations in China. Over 2,500 ACEA Biosciences instruments are installed worldwide.

The acquisition contributes to Agilent’s goals to expand its cell analysis business and its clinical business in China. In China, ACEA Biosciences sells a China FDA-approved clinical flow cytometer system, which will now use flow cytometer reagents from Agilent’s (formerly Dako’s) Reagent Partnership business. This is Agilent’s eighth acquisition announced this year, and the second dedicated to cell analysis (see IBO 1/15/18).