EMD Millipore, the Life Science business of Merck Germany, and Singulex, the developer and leading provider of Single Molecule Counting (SMC™) technology for clinical diagnostics and scientific discovery, announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which EMD Millipore will control and manage the Singulex Life Science Research business.
The SMC technology is a novel, patented technology combining signal enhancement and background reduction coupled with low volume sampling to achieve ultra-high sensitivity protein detection. The clinical benefits of this technology have been well established and Singulex will continue to operate a large and successful clinical service business based on novel, enabling SMC assays. Financial and other terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Reliable, ultra-sensitive protein detection is a critical unmet need in life science research. Current technologies allow detection of only approximately five percent of proteins in the entire proteome due to the very low abundance of many biomarkers, leaving the vast majority of proteins virtually undetectable.