PhyNexus Inc said on Tuesday that it has agreed to be acquired by Biotage AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: BIOT.ST), strengthening its position for world-wide sales and marketing of automated lab-scale purification technology of biomolecules.

The merged companies of PhyNexus and Biotage will be able to provide their global customers an enabling automation platform based on Dual Flow Chromatography and patented tip technology for high throughput purification of biomolecules such as proteins, plasmids and antibodies at the lab-scale.

Upon the planned closure, the companies will fully address the growing multi-billion market in the US, including purification and manipulation of biomolecules.The combination of technology and resources will enable the development of new approaches for clinical, forensic, food and environmental testing.

San Jose, California-based PhyNexus offers protein and plasmid sample preparation columns and robotics. Its products miniaturize and automate purification while retaining the native state of the protein and/or provide transient transfection quality plasmids. The columns are modified to be compatible with all of the major robotic liquid handlers and with their own liquid handlers. Its customers are life scientists in pharmaceutical companies and academia doing research for drug target and validation, drug screening and lead optimization, drug development, clinical trials, and drug manufacturing.

Headquartered in Uppsala, Biotage offers efficient separation technologies from analysis to industrial-scale and high-quality solutions for analytical chemistry from research to commercial analysis laboratories. Its products are used by public authorities, academic institutions, contract research and contract manufacturing organizations and in the pharmaceutical and food industries, among others. It has 410 employees.