BELTSVILLE, Md.—BioServe, a provider of molecular and predictive genetic diagnostic testing, has acquired Genomics Collaborative from SeraCare Life Sciences Inc. and, in a separate announcement, has named Kevin Krenitsky chief executive officer. Prior to a stint as CEO of Parkway Clinical Laboratories, Krenitsky was medical director and later a senior VP at Genomics Collaborative. BioServe notes that Genomics Collaborative is a leader in facilitating biomarker discovery and validation through its Global Repository, a comprehensive library of 600,000 human DNA, tissue and serum samples linked to detailed clinical and demographic data from 140,000 consenting and anonymous patients.
"With the addition of the Genomic Collaborative bio-bank to the company's comprehensive services, BioServe is on track to become the leader in helping researchers discover and validate a new generation of superior diagnostic and therapeutic targets," Dr. Krenitsky says. The company currently employs about 55 in Beltsville and its recently opened facility in Hyderabad, India, which is primarily engaged in serving the molecular and genetic diagnostics market in that country. Revenues last year were "just south" of $10 million, Krenitsky notes, and the company is profitable.
Continuing as president of the company he founded more than 15 years ago to extract nucleic acids from biological specimens, Rama Modali cited Krenitsky's experience in diagnostics, and preclinical and clinical pharma—as well as his in-depth knowledge of the Genomics Collaborative business—as reasons that make him a "perfect fit to lead BioServe into the future."
Through this acquisition, BioServe significantly expands its preclinical product and service capabilities to provide pharma, biotech, NIH and academic clients "biomaterial to validated data" services, the company states. Current services range from nucleic acid processing, DNA synthesis, high-throughput sequencing and genotyping, genome-wide scans and gene expression analyses to large epidemiologically sound case-control studies of inflammatory disorders, endocrine disorders, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, obesity and many cancers.
"The acquisition of Genomics Collaborative firmly positions BioServe as a preferred partner for preclinical discovery and validation studies. Working with BioServe, drug discovery researchers have the flexibility to tap the Bio Repository to augment their in-house sample sets, design entire genomic studies around our sample library, and further benefit from BioServe's proven ability to process and analyze vast quantities of genomic content," adds Rama Modali.
Genomics Collaborative will operate as a fully integrated division of BioServe, offering its DNA, tissue and serum global repository samples to BioServe's customers worldwide. BioServe will continue to offer the GCI Access program, which allows researchers around the world to access human DNA, RNA, serum and tissue samples with comprehensive informed consent and detailed clinical data, on a fee-for-service basis.
Genomics Collaborative will operate as a fully integrated division of BioServe, offering its DNA, tissue and serum global repository samples to BioServe's customers worldwide. BioServe will continue to offer the GCI Access program, which allows researchers around the world to access human DNA, RNA, serum and tissue samples with comprehensive informed consent and detailed clinical data, on a fee-for-service basis.
