PerkinElmer, Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire Sirion Biotech GmbH, a, global provider of viral vector-based technologies that drive improved delivery performance for cell and gene therapies. The acquisition is expected to close during the third quarter of 2021.
 
Headquartered in Munich, Germany, privately held Sirion has approximately 50 employees based in Germany, the U.S. and France. The company has established a strong licensing portfolio leveraged by over a dozen major pharmaceutical and biotech players researching more than 25 diseases and conditions.
 
The addition of Sirion’s offerings will complement PerkinElmer’s Horizon Discovery portfolio which includes gene editing and modulation tools for CRISPR, CRISPRi and RNAi, custom cell lines for bio production and base editing technologies. Moreover, the acquisition will further broaden PerkinElmer’s existing cell and gene research solutions featuring industry-leading high content, in vivo, and cell painting screening technologies; innovative immunoassays; cell plate readers; and advanced automation, microfluidics and informatics and analytical platforms.
 
Commenting on the agreement to acquire the company, Prahlad Singh, president and chief executive officer of PerkinElmer, said, “Seventy percent of gene therapy trials today leverage viral vector approaches and we expect this to remain strong going forward given the demand for targeted, high-payload delivery in treating diseases like cancer. By combining Sirion’s innovative “payload” transport technology with our existing Horizon genetic material editing tools and phenotypic research solutions, we will be able to support organizations’ cell and gene therapy workflows as they look to streamline and accelerate their efforts.”
 
Dr. Christian Thirion, CEO of Sirion, added, “Our team is excited to work with PerkinElmer to continue to grow our leading position in viral vector technologies for cell and gene therapy. We will benefit greatly from becoming part of the PerkinElmer portfolio, with increased access to genomics analysis, gene editing and base editing technologies, as well as a strong global infrastructure and reach.”