Bio-Techne Signs Strategic Cooperation Agreement with Micropoint Bioscience

News provided by

Oct 12, 2018, 08:30 ET

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bio-Techne has entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with Micropoint Bioscience of Shenzhen, China. Chuck Kummeth, President and CEO of Bio-Techne, Yan Pingyi, Chairman of Micropoint Bioscience, and Wang Bin, Executive Vice President, Shenzhen Association of Medical Devices, all attended the meeting and signing ceremony.

Micropoint Bioscience is a high-tech, newly-listed enterprise in China that has developed a microfluidic diagnostic chip for point-of-care (POC) testing. POC testing is revolutionizing healthcare by accelerating the speed of diagnosis and, subsequently, the administration of treatment. It also gives medical providers the ability to test and treat individuals who do not have access to a health care facility. The microfluidic diagnostic chip from Micropoint Bioscience will advance POC testing by shrinking tests so that only minimal volumes of samples and reagents are required. Bio-Teche is a leading provider of high-quality consumables and instruments for the life science and molecular diagnostic markets. Its antibody product lines are used to functionalize both research and diagnostic instruments and are core components to many biomarker assay platforms including the ProteinSimple-branded Ella^™, a microfluidic-based instrument that is a fully automated multianalyte immunoassay platform. Working together, Bio-Techne and Micropoint Bioscience will further strengthen the integration of this microfluidic technology in order to develop better and more accurate POC diagnostic tools for precision medicine in China.

Chuck Kummeth commented, "The synergies are obvious between our two companies. Diagnostic decisions are increasingly being driven by cytokine- and growth factor-related profiles in circulating body fluids. This creates the need for a testing platform that can accommodate more complex biomarker signatures. Having access to high-quality reagents is necessary for expanding test options in order to address these emerging diagnostic markets and needs."

Yan Pingyi added, "Micropoint is excited about this collaboration because it will allow us to develop diagnostic tools for monitoring patients' responses to cancer immunotherapy and identifying potential adverse effects, such as the cytokine release syndrome. This agreement leverages our respective strengths. We understand the China diagnostic market and have developed the necessary regulatory infrastructure to serve it. Having access to Bio-Techne's key reagents and additional immunoassay testing platforms will help us succeed in this market."

About Bio-Techne Corporation (NASDAQ: TECH)

Contact: Dave Eansor, President, Protein Sciences Segment, 612-379-2956

SOURCE Bio-Techne Corporation