Malvern Instruments, a global provider of instrumentation and expertise for materials and biophysical characterisation based in the UK, has acquired Amesbury, UK-based nanoparticle characterisation company NanoSight, for an undisclosed sum.
NanoSight has developed a patented technology called Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis (NTA), which detects and visualises populations of nanoparticles in liquids down to 10nm and measures the size of each particle from direct observations of diffusion. The firm has more than 600 systems installed worldwide with users including Big Pharma, universities and research institutes. With their ability to analyse particle size, concentration, zeta potential and aggregation, NanoSight's systems are closely aligned with Malvern’s Zetasizer range and will therefore extend Malvern’s solutions for those working at the nanoscale.
The largest applications area for NTA is currently in life sciences, for the measurement of biological nanoparticles, where one of the most rapidly expanding fields is exosomes. These are intercellular messengers whose quantity and biochemical composition reflect the disease status of an individual. NanoSight technology uniquely provides quantitative detection and characterisation capabilities to make exosomes a viable proposition as biomarkers for drug discovery, disease prognosis, diagnosis and monitoring, as well as personalised medicine.
Paul Walker, Managing Director of Malvern Instruments, said: 'NanoSight has grown every year since it was established in 2002 and has ambitious plans for the future. We will be providing the investment and support needed to continue this drive forward and are absolutely committed to developing the NanoSight brand within the Malvern portfolio.
He added: 'NanoSight’s unique technology has become accepted in laboratories around the world and is widely cited in research publications. With rapid advances in nanomaterials and the life sciences, in biopharmaceuticals especially, the demand for new technologies to answer continually evolving analytical challenges has never been greater. This is a very exciting time and by bringing together complementary, leading edge technologies, Malvern continues to focus on delivering the analytical tools which laboratories so urgently need.'
Jeremy Warren, CEO of NanoSight, said: 'The plans we have are ambitious and exciting, and the support and reach of the Malvern organisation will allow us to grow more rapidly than we could alone.'
NanoSight employs around 50 people worldwide and will continue to operate from its current facilities in Amesbury, Wiltshire, UK, under the existing management team. Malvern’s direct sales operations in key geographies and wider global presence will be used to make the NanoSight instruments and aftersales support more accessible to a wider market.
