Operating as part of the company, the Cell Therapy Systems unit will leverage Invitrogen’s recent investments in this area.
Invitrogen is forming a new business unit that will focus meeting the needs of researchers involved in developing cell therapies. The Cell Therapy Systems segment will operate within the company.
This entity will integrate related technologies including Dynal® magnetic beads for cell isolation, Gibco® cell-expansion media, and Molecular Probes® cell-characterization tools.
Invitrogen believes that the creation of Cell Therapy Systems will further the firm’s investments in this field. In May 2007, the company picked up Cascade Biologics, which produces primary human cell culture systems and reagents. In January, Invitrogen decided to buy CellzDirect for $57 million in cash, thus gaining the firm’s hepatocyte-based cell products. Most recently, Invitrogen made an investment in cell therapy company Q Therapeutics to help it understand instrumentation requirements to carry out such research.
“Moving cell therapies through the research, clinical, and commercial phases of development presents its own unique challenges, which Invitrogen is uniquely positioned to address,” according to Joydeep Goswami, vp, stem cells and regenerative medicine. “We bring project-management capabilities to the table, pulling together tools, reagents, and services from across the company to meet the specific needs of cell therapy companies. By offering integrated solutions, we can help accelerate the field toward groundbreaking therapies.”
