NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Exact Sciences will expand into 10,000-square-feet of additional space at University Research Park at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, while Epicentre will move its Madison operations into a 27,000-square-foot space at the park, URP announced on Wednesday.
Exact Sciences already occupies about 25,000 square feet at URP and will move into a space that previously was occupied by biotech firm Aldevron and EMD Millipore, a division of Merck KGaA. Aldevron, which specializes in plasmid DNA and protein production and antibody technologies, is moving to new spaces at URP, while EMD Millipore's lease expired.
As Exact Sciences approaches the completion of its DeeP-C clinical trial for its Cologuard colorectal cancer screening test, the firm plans to use the additional space to prepare its manufacturing and other capabilities for the launch of the test, following anticipated approval by the US Food and Drug Administration, company President and CEO Kevin Conroy said in a statement.
Exact Sciences recently raised around $58 million in a public offering of its common stock, with proceeds intended to support commercialization efforts.
Epicentre, which Illumina acquired at the start of 2011, will occupy a floor of URP's Accelerator building, which offers companies a "mix of shared resources, value-added amenities, and the potential for growth through specialized research and development facilities," URP said.
Epicentre, founded in 1987, provides nucleic acid sample preparation reagents and enzymes for sequencing and microarray applications.