NEW YORK – Canadian molecular diagnostics developer LuminUltra announced Monday that it has acquired the Legionella testing business of Ottawa-based Genomadix and has licensed rights to develop additional assays on that firm's Cube portable molecular testing system. Financial terms of the arrangement were not disclosed.
Formerly known as Spartan Bioscience, Genomadix is the developer of the Cube molecular diagnostic system — a 4-inch cube that performs cartridge-based sample-to-answer RT-qPCR in approximately one hour with fluorescent readout from two optical channels.
Legionella infections are the cause of Legionnaire's disease and are frequently traced to bacterial proliferation in water stored in cooling towers on buildings.
Regarding Legionella testing of environmental samples, LuminUltra CEO Pat Whalen said in a statement that the firm "can now help even more customers around the world to rapidly and accurately monitor and manage against the proliferation of harmful Legionella bacteria." The rapid, point-of-use Cube system complements LuminUltra's existing GeneCount laboratory qPCR workflow and mail-in sample testing offerings, Whalen said, offering near real-time, accurate results for time-sensitive, "in-field" use cases.
Genomadix CEO Steve Edgett further noted in the statement that Genomadix will support a seamless transition with its customers for this transaction, which was completed at the end of July.
"We are thrilled that LuminUltra will bring scale, expertise, and focus to the Legionella business," Edgett said, adding that Genomadix is now focused on commercializing precision medicine tests on the Cube as well as licensing the CubeX Open Platform to strategic partners.
"This agreement is a win-win as LuminUltra will lead the development of new tests and expanded access to fast and accurate qPCR testing on CubeX for time-sensitive point-of-use applications in applied markets," Edgett also said.