Applera Corp. is spending $195 million to acquire Berkeley HeartLab, with plans to add the company to its Celera Group subsidiary it is considering spinning off as an independent company.
Berkeley HeartLab (BHL) has $85 million in annual revenue selling cardiac tests and disease-management services. The company is based in Burlingame, Calif., and employs 300 people.
Celera indicated BHL adds an added outlet for its genetic-based diagnostic tests under development.
Applera spokesman Peter Dworkin said the Norwalk office is unlikely to be affected by the spinoff of Maryland-based Celera, which would leave Applera with California-based Applied Biosystems as its lone subsidiary.
“There is going to be a need for the type of professional ”¦ functions that we have in Norwalk that serve the businesses, so we don”™t anticipate any changes,” Dworkin said.
In separate Applera news, a federal judge dismissed Enzo Biochem Inc.”™s claims that Applied Biosystems violated its patents on methods for detecting nucleic acid sequences.
New York City-based Enzo indicated it would appeal the decision.
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