bioMérieux Acquires Microbial Genotyping Technology

bioMérieux (Marcy-l'Etoile, France), a company specializing in in vitro diagnostics, has acquired Bacterial Barcodes (BBCI, Athens, Georgia, USA). The financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

BBCI is a molecular biotechnology company that developed and markets DiversiLab, a system dedicated to the field of automated microbial genotyping, offering solutions to track hospital-acquired infections (HAI) and for environmental control for product safety.

The technology automates the previously cumbersome method of strain typing and allows for better genotypic characterization of bacteria, yeast, and fungi, which helps identify the source and stop the spread of further infection. DiversiLab complements the bioMérieux suite of solutions, and together they support clinical decisions that may ultimately reduce HAIs and support the prudent usage of antibiotics.

The DiversiLab system eliminates complex manual laboratory procedures for determining the source of infections and contamination. DiversiLab allows healthcare practitioners and quality control/assurance departments to conduct investigations up to 10 times faster than previous methods. The system consists of web-based software for detection and analysis, and quality-controlled DNA fingerprinting kits (or reagents).

The technology is focused on the rapid identification of outbreak and contamination source tracking and is applicable in the hygiene market for tracking antibiotic resistant microorganisms causing hospital-acquired infections and in industrial markets for food, agricultural, pharmaceutical, and environmental contamination testing. It is also useful for characterizing biothreat agents and identifying potential outbreaks in the biodefense market.

"We are excited about the opportunity to join the industry leader in the field of infectious disease diagnostics and infection control and we feel positive about the impact our solutions can have in both the healthcare and industrial markets,” said Mimi Healy, Ph.D., president and CEO, BBCI. "The DiversiLab system perfectly complements bioMerieux's technology portfolio, which will help discriminate and track the spread and source of bacterial infections and contamination more quickly, more accurately, and more cost-effectively than other systems on the market today.”



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