Billerica, MA 8/24/18—Scientific instrument firm Bruker has agreed to acquire an 80% stake in Germany-based Hain Lifescience for an undisclosed amount. Hain Lifescience is expected to record $38 million in revenues this year and is profitable. Hain Lifescience provides sample preparation products, and CE-IVD-marked tests for microbiology and virology infectious disease molecular diagnostics, as well as a PCR-based system utilizing a novel assay format. “Hain is a great fit for Bruker’s Microbiology & Diagnostics business, which is one of the key drivers for our Project Accelerate. With this planned acquisition, we expect to broaden our footprint in molecular diagnostics, particularly in microbiology and virology testing solutions,” stated Bruker President and CEO Frank Laukien. Hain is well-known in the fields of tuberculosis testing and other mycobacterial infection testing. The deal is expected to be accretive to 2019 non-GAAP EPS by $0.01–$0.02. Hain Lifescience Managing Directors David Hain and Tobias Hain will retain their titles in the joint business, which will be known as Bruker-Hain.

Dr. Wolfgang Pusch, executive vice president for Microbiology & Diagnostics at Bruker Daltonics, told IBO, “Hain has an existing profitable business around established PCR assays with a focus in the field of infectious disease testing. The GenoType assays allow for the detection of PCR fragments by hybridization on nitrocellulose strips. This approach is straightforward and easy to use. It can also readily be applied in developing countries with high prevalence of tuberculosis where the standard of healthcare might not be at the same level as in the USA or in Europe.” He added, “In addition Hain has a very interesting innovation pipeline with an innovative real-time PCR system, the Fluorocycler XT and a proprietary assay format, the so-called Liquid Arrays which will allow for a higher level of multiplexing in the PCR assay.”

Asked about possible FDA submission for Hain Lifescience’s tests, Dr. Pusch said, “Typically, we pursue regulatory approval in Europe first. Over time, we intend to bring some Hain products also to the US markets, especially the upcoming innovative Liquid Array syndromic panel assays, which are currently in the R&D pipeline.”

In regards to Bruker’s current offerings for tuberculosis testing, he commented, “The MALDI Biotyper has broad microbial reference libraries available. A special library also covers mycobacteria, which can be used to identify the tuberculosis complex. According inactivation protocols are available. In contrast, the molecular assays from Hain do not need prior cultivation and thus enable a rapid answer directly from patient samples.”

Bruker is further building upon its microbiology franchise, which is anchored by its MALDI Biotyper system, with an installed base of more than 2,700 systems. Last year the company purchased InVivo Biotech Services (see IBO 1/15/17 ), a contract manufacturing organization, and a leading provider of monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins.  The company has also focused on its diagnostic dbusiness with the purchases of MERLIN Diagnostika (see IBO 9/30/17).