NEW YORK – The special committee of 23andMe's board of directors on Friday responded to an offer by CEO Anne Wojcicki earlier this week to take the company private by purchasing all outstanding shares for $.40 per share in cash. In a letter to Wojcicki, the committee said it is "disappointed" by the proposal because it provides no premium to the company's share closing price on July 31, lacks committed financing, and is conditional in nature. "Accordingly, we view your proposal as insufficient and not in the best interest of the non-affiliated shareholders," it wrote, adding that it is "not prepared to move forward under the terms provided" and that it plans to assess whether there is interest in the company from third parties. That said, the committee said it is willing to give Wojcicki and her potential investors "a limited amount" of additional time to submit a revised proposal that meets its expectations and requirements. In the meantime, the committee intends to hire a consultant to work on a revised business plan to help the company achieve "a more sustainable financial profile" and profitability.
Agilent Technologies said this week that it has acquired Sigsense Technologies, a San Francisco-based startup that uses artificial intelligence and power monitoring to help optimize lab operations. Sigsense technology is already available to Agilent customers through the company's CrossLab Connect, which is used to monitor a wide range of instruments, including chromatography, mass spectrometry, spectroscopy, liquid handlers, plate readers, flow cytometry, centrifuges, NMR, sequencers, and PCR. Integrated into the Agilent CrossLab Connect asset monitoring solution, Sigsense's algorithm tracks instrument utilization and status across all scientific assets, regardless of vendor or manufacturer, Agilent said. Sigsense employees, IP, and assets are now part of the Agilent CrossLab Group. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Genome mapping company Nabsys said this week that Hitachi High-Tech has acquired a majority interest in the company, making it a consolidated subsidiary of Hitachi High-Tech Group. Nabsys declined to disclose the size of Hitachi’s investment. Hitachi first invested in Nabsys in 2019 and subsequently in 2022 to support the development and commercialization of the firm’s electronic genome mapping platform, dubbed OhmX Analyzer. By making Nabsys a consolidated subsidiary, Hitachi aims to accelerate the adoption of OhmX, the company said in a statement.
The National Institutes of Health's All of Us research program said this week that it has started limited enrollment of children between the ages of 0 and 4 years at five partner healthcare organizations in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, California, and Connecticut. To do so, the program needed to develop protocols that are specific to children and update its technology platforms. All of Us started enrolling kids in late 2023 as part of a pilot phase and modified the enrolling process after gaining feedback from its partners and parents. The program plans to enroll a few hundred children and their families this year. Pending available funding, it hopes to increase pediatric enrollment to include older children and additional sites.
Proteomics firm Alamar Biosciences of Fremont, California, said last week that it has achieved ISO 13485:2016 certification. According to the firm, the certification process involved an evaluation of its quality management system, including assessments of its policies, procedures, and practices. Alamar has commercialized a system and assays for the automated and sensitive detection of protein biomarkers from biofluids. Separately, Alamar said this week that it has established European headquarters and a distribution center in Milan, Italy. The new location will serve as the central hub for its operations in Europe and ensure efficient and timely delivery of its products.
T2 Biosystems this week reported flat year-over-year revenues for the second quarter. The company booked $2.0 million in revenues in Q2, all from sepsis testing-related products, the same amount as a year ago. A 27 percent increase in sepsis test revenues was offset by declines in international instrument sales. Net loss was $9.2 million, or $.66 per share, compared to a net loss of $6.3 million, or $7.84 per share, in Q2 2023. The Lexington, Massachusetts-based company ended the quarter with $4.2 million in cash and cash equivalents and $551,000 in restricted cash. T2 continues to expect full-year revenues of $10 million to $11 million, all from sepsis products.
Germany's Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) has announced six genome data centers (GRZs) and seven clinical data nodes (KDKs) for the country's new national precision medicine model project, following the passage of an ordinance by the Bundesrat, one of Germany's federal legislative chambers, earlier this month. The GRZs are located at Max Delbrück Center Berlin, Technical University of Dresden, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) Heidelberg, University of Cologne, Technical University of Munich, and University of Tübingen. The KDKs are located at University Hospital Dresden, National Center for Tumor Diseases Heidelberg, University Hospital Cologne, University of Leipzig (two data nodes), and University Hospital Tübingen (two data nodes).
Australian molecular diagnostics company Genetic Signatures said this week that it recorded A$4.5 million (US$2.9 million) in sales for its fiscal fourth quarter ended June 30, essentially flat compared to the same quarter a year ago. Revenues were driven by the resumption of sales of the EasyScreen Respiratory Pathogen Detection Kit following authorization of the revised kit by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration. The company said that sales to international markets accounted for approximately 5 percent of overall sales in Q4. Genetic Signatures ended the quarter with A$36.3 million in cash including the proceeds from a A$30 million capital raise completed in July that comprised an institutional placement and a fully underwritten entitlement offer to shareholders. Also during the quarter, the US Food and Drug Administration granted 510(k) clearance to the company's EasyScreen Gastrointestinal Parasite Detection Kit and GS1 automated workflow.
Predictive diagnostics and bioanalytical services company Proteomics International Laboratories this week reported A$148,000 (US$97,000) in revenue for the quarter ended June 30. The Western Australian company ended the quarter with A$6.6 million in cash.
Indian diagnostics and research services firm MedGenome said last month that it has acquired a stake of undisclosed size in GenX Diagnostics, a diagnostic laboratory chain in Odisha, India. GenX maintains seven diagnostic centers and 60 collection centers across the state.
In Brief This Week is a selection of news items that may be of interest to our readers but had not previously appeared on GenomeWeb.