Taking Stock Of Qiagen

Since its acquisition of Digene in 2007, Qiagen's business mix has shifted significantly towards molecular diagnostics even as the company remains true to its founding premise of making things simpler for customers. It has broadened its skill set in nucleic acid analysis with multiple acquired and licensed technologies for platform development while focusing on high volume tests in women's health and infectious diseases and new ties with pharma. Expect its acquisition pattern to continue.

There are many potential entry points to the molecular diagnostics business: biomarker discovery, laboratory operations, instrumentation development, even disease management. Companies in these various sectors are customizing their own approaches to molecular diagnostics and personalized medicines, combining M&A, licensing, and internal R&D to develop what they believe are core opportunities. ( See "Leveraging Assay Platforms to Create Category-Killer Diagnostic Tests," IN VIVO , December 2009 Also see "Leveraging Assay Platforms to Create Category-Killer Diagnostic Tests " - In Vivo, 1 December, 2009. and "Molecular Diagnostics – From Tools to Tests," IN VIVO , May 2006 Also see "Molecular Diagnostics--From Tools to Tests" - In Vivo, 1 May, 2006..)

Qiagen NV, for its part, has used its leading position in nucleic acid-based sample preparation to gain a foothold...

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