Company Announcements

RainDance Technologies closed a $20 million Series E financing round in April that included Myriad Genetics as a new strategic equity investor.

In April, Co-Diagnostics agreed to acquire from DNA Logix certain technologies for genetic analysis in the clinical, industrial and bio-threat markets.

BioFire Diagnostics expanded its financial commitment with Athyrium Opportunities Fund in May from $25 million to $45 million.

In May, TriLink BioTechnologies signed a licensing agreement with QuantiBact to offer twisted intercalating nucleic acid (TINA) modified oligonucleotides, which improve the sensitivity and specificity of endpoint and real-time PCR.

SYGNIS Pharma licensed in May its new amplification buffer, polymerase QualiPhi, to QIAGEN.

Product Introductions

Fluorogenics launched in April the cost effective Generix lyophilized PCR mastermix, an ambient stored cold PCR mastermix for conventional and real-time PCR.

In May, Bio-Rad Laboratories launched the PrimePCR Mouse Assays and Panels, experimentally validated SYBR Green–based gene expression assays for the mouse genome.

Bio-Rad Laboratories released the SsoAdvanced universal supermixes for qPCR, featuring the Sso7d fusion enzyme, for use with any real-time PCR instrument.

Bio-Rad Laboratories launched in July the Prime PCR assays for Droplet Digital PCR for mutation detection and copy number variation.

Integrated DNA Technologies introduced the PrimeTime qPCR Assay Plates for high-throughput qPCR analysis. Primers and probes for 5’-nuclease and intercalating dye assays can be directly ordered online in a 96-well plate format.

In June, Life Technologies began shipping the QuantStudio 3D Digital PCR System (see IBO 2/15/13) at a price of $39,000.

Life Technologies released in June the TaqMan hPSC Scorecard Panel, a characterization assay that establishes a standardized benchmark against which researchers can evaluate pluripotency and trilineage differentiation potential in human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cell lines.

Bioline, a Meridian Bioscience company, introduced in July the MyTaq Extract-PCR Kit for extraction and amplification of DNA from mammalian tissue types. It consists of a simple 15 minute, single tube protocol.

3M Food Safety launched in July the 3M Molecular Detection Assay Listeria monocytogenes, its fourth test for use with the 3M Molecular Detection System. Presumptive positive results are delivered in real time, and negative results are displayed after the assay is completed.