Quest Diagnostics to acquire Celera Corp for $671 million

US medical lab-testing provider Quest Diagnostics Inc yesterday said that it would acquire gene testing company Celera Corp, for $671 million in a deal that gives it access to a portfolio of proprietary genetic biomarkers.

Celera, based in Alameda, California was founded to sequence the human genome and identify links between genetic variations and disease states. Its renowned discovery program has identified numerous genetic biomarkers that assess disease risk or help clinician's select appropriate therapies for many diseases and has a portfolio of proprietary genetic biomarkers across the disease spectrum. It has about 100 issued or pending patents. 

Berkeley HeartLab, a subsidiary of Celera, offers services to predict cardiovascular disease risk and improve patient management. Celera also commercialises a wide range of molecular diagnostic products through a unit of Abbott Labs and has licensed other relevant diagnostic technologies developed to provide personalised disease management in cancer and liver diseases.

Celera generated revenues of $128 million in 2010.

Quest Diagnostics is the world's leading provider of diagnostic testing and operates a network of laboratories and patient service centres. 

Last month, Quest had offered to buy the Athena Diagnostics business from scientific instruments maker Thermo Fisher Scientific for $740 million in cash. It had also been on the lookout since 2008 to acquire a genetic test developer.