Nexelis Expands Bioanalytical Services with Bioanalytical Lab Acquisition

Nexelis, a portfolio company of Ampersand Capital Partners and a provider of advanced assay development and laboratory testing services, has signed an asset purchase agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to acquire GSK’s good clinical laboratory practices (GCLP)-certified clinical bioanalytical laboratory located in Marburg, Germany.

The transaction is effective at the end of January 2021, Nexelis stated in a Jan. 20, 2021 press release. Nexelis intends to quickly expand the Marburg site, initiating collaborations with other vaccine development companies as well as with its other North American and European sites. The company expects to add new clinical testing platforms in Marburg that will be fully bridged with Laval platforms, develop synergies with its early development-stage ImmunXperts branch in Belgium, and leverage existing talents in fields such as biostatistics to form a broad-based, end-to-end service offering in bacteriology, virology, and oncology.

The clinical laboratory science team in Marburg, consisting of approximately 80 scientists and analysts, will be transferred to Nexelis and will continue to keep a strong relationship with GSK. The team will support the development of future GSK vaccine candidates through a five-year strategic collaborative agreement, Nexelis said in the press release.

“We are thrilled to welcome on board new colleagues with a legacy of over 20 years under Novartis and GSK leadership in clinical laboratory activities supporting the development of vaccines against viral and bacterial diseases. We believe that this transaction is a determining step in the establishment of Nexelis as an unrivaled global vaccine player,” said Nexelis CEO Benoit Bouche in the press release.

“Strategic outsourcing will optimize GSK’s footprint and increase our agility so that we can continue to accelerate the development of the candidate vaccines in our pipeline. Based on the previous successful transfer of other laboratory activities to Nexelis, we are confident that this will be a great fit due to the quality and agility of the Nexelis organization,” added Emmanuel Hanon, head of GSK Vaccines R&D, in the press release.

Source:Nexelis