News Feature | February 9, 2016

Acquisition Aims To Further Genomic Profiling, Bioinformatics And Data Curation

Christine Kern

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Tackling The Coming Surge In Healthcare Data With Trained Machines

The merger between Venaxis and Strand Life Sciences will initially focus on developing StrandAdvantage tests with further expansion expected.

Venaxis, a Castle Rock, CO-based developer of an in vitro diagnostic test for acute appendicitis, has announced plans to acquire Strand Life Sciences, an India-based cancer genomics firm that has U.S. headquarters in Aurora, CO.

“We are pleased to announce this transaction and are excited by the significant opportunity we believe it presents for shareholders of Venaxis and Strand LS,” Steve Lundy, CEO of Venaxis said in the release. “Our initial focus will be to improve patient outcomes through the use of the StrandAdvantage pan-cancer gene panel, which was commercially launched in the United States in 2015. The combined company is expected to be focused on the continued commercialization of StrandAdvantage, as well as the development of additional oncology-related diagnostics.”

The acquisition process will take several months, with Strand shareholders ultimately owning 68 percent of the combined business. Venaxis shareholders will own the remaining 32 percent if they approve the merger.

Vijay Chandru, Strand Life Science’s executive chairman and co-founder, will serve as executive chairman of the merged company’s board, which will be comprised of four Strand directors and three Venaxis directors. Lundy will be CEO of the new company.

“On behalf of the Strand LS shareholders, we believe that this transaction represents an attractive opportunity for Strand Life Sciences, as an agile innovator in clinical genomics, to combine forces with Venaxis, a public company in the United States with experienced executives and board members to help it rapidly expand market adoption of StrandAdvantage and other future product offerings,” Chandru said.

After the merger, the initial focus will be on the StrandAdvantage test which diagnose a patient’s cancer and identifies treatment based on the patient’s genetic profile and locates eligible clinical trials for that patient. Future expansion of the business is anticipated, moving into new technology. Venaxis has been developing Appy1, a new technology that helps emergency room physicians diagnose acute appendicitis quickly, but they have yet to obtain FDA approval, according to the Denver Business Journal.