Roche divests protein expression portfolio
pharmafile | September 10, 2009 | News story | Research and Development | Roche, genomics
Roche has sold its cell-free protein expression kits business for an undisclosed sum.
Berlin-based company RiNA will take control of the Roche Applied Science Rapid Translation System (RTS) Protein Expression portfolio next week.
“We believe that a company specialising in proteomics will be able to develop the potential of RTS technology much faster than we can,” explained Manfred Baier, head of Roche Applied Science.
Roche would increasingly focus on genomics, he added.
RTS technology is used in a variety of research projects, allowing scientists to obtain substantial amounts of protein quickly without having to grow cells.
This helps remove a major headache in proteomics work, which involves the identification of the body’s proteins – such as those in tumour cells – to find out their role in various conditions.
RiNA chief executive Leo Tristram believes the acquisition is a good fit for the company.
“The RTS cell-free expression kits ideally complement the RiNA product portfolio and its dedicated customer-specific service for cell-free biosynthesis,” he said.
Hamburg company 5 Prime, which manufactures kits for molecular biology applications, such as nucleic acid purification and protein expression, will handle global sales, support, and distribution of the Roche products.
Tristram added: “RTS technology will form a strong basis for joint development of innovative products in this dynamic field.”
5 Prime already has products for purifying and detecting recombinant proteins. “This agreement allows us to address the attractive market for cell-free protein expression with a well-established product line,” said its chief executive Bernd Haase.
RiNA was spun out of the Institute of Biochemistry at the Free University of Berlin and works in the field of prokaryotic and eukaryotic protein expression systems.
The company has been heavily involved in the development of RTS technology and says it will “continue production at the same quality standards defined by Roche”.
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