Thermo Fisher Acquires Open Biosystems to Augment RNAi Portfolio

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) - Thermo Fisher Scientific said today that it has acquired Open Biosystems, a privately held provider of RNAi research products, for an undisclosed sum.

 

Thermo Fisher said in a statement that the acquisition "significantly expands" its presence in the RNAi field because Open Biosystems' specialty, short-hairpin RNA, complements the small-interfering RNA technology it already sells through its Thermo Scientific Dharmacon product line.

 

"Together, shRNA and siRNA represent the two most widely used RNAi platforms," Thermo Fisher said in a statement.

 

In addition to RNAi products, Open Biosystems also offers collections of cDNA and open reading frame vectors for gene expression, as well as custom antibody services.

 

Open Biosystems was founded in 2001 and is based in Huntsville, Ala. Thermo Fisher said that the company had annual revenues of around $14 million in 2007.

 

Open Biosystems will be integrated into Thermo Fisher's Analytical Technologies Segment.