Leading Dutch alliance in biochip development: Qurin Diagnostics and LioniX International acquire Surfix

As of April 15, 2019, Qurin Diagnostics and Lionix International have acquired Surfix. As a supplier of custom-made nanocoatings, the capabilities of Surfix are highly complementary to the products and services offered by Qurin and LioniX International. The companies are already working together closely on early cancer detection and have realized a sensitive biochip, bringing together their respective complementary technologies for this purpose. This acquisition strengthens their relationship and mutual commitment towards bringing this technology to the global biomedical market.

Molecular (“DNA”) diagnostics hold great promise for early diagnosis and personalized medicine and has clear clinical added value. Nevertheless, market penetration falls short of expectations, as the costs of current diagnostic platforms are too high. Currently available diagnostic platforms based on Polymerase Chain Reaction and Next Generation Sequencing are very expensive, time consuming, and require extensive infrastructure and highly skilled personnel. A breakthrough is needed for the desired mass implementation of molecular diagnostics to revolutionize medicine.

Qurin has the goal to realize a diagnostic test platform that will overcome these limitations for the early detection and monitoring of cancer, using urine as a liquid biopsy. This platform uses the biophotonic sensor technology developed by Lionix International and the nanocoatings of Surfix. With this acquisition, Qurin and LioniX International strengthen their technology position by adding Surfix’s biofunctionalization technology to their portfolio.

‘With Qurin and Lionix International, Surfix gets strong strategic partners to collaboratively achieve our goals and enable further growth and development of the company’, said Luc Scheres, CEO of Surfix. ‘This acquisition fits with our technical and commercial strategy, since it strengthens our focus and accelerates the development and commercialization of our nanocoating technologies.’

According to Qurin’s CEO Coenraad K. van Kalken, MD, PhD, Surfix’s advanced nanocoating technology, almost literally represent the necessary chemical “glue” between the globally recognized nanophysics technology of Lionix and oncological diagnostic expertise of Qurin. An effective and stimulating collaboration has been established with Dutch industrial and academic partners leading this international field, enjoying increasing recognition and support.

‘This acquisition further strengthens the position of LioniX International as a vertical integrated supplier in the bio-photonic sensing market, since the technology of Surfix also enables the offering of surface functionalization for biological applications in the modules we develop for our customers, the novel biochip is broadly applicable in Medical and other global fields requiring low-threshold sensitive biodiagnostics’, said Hans van den Vlekkert, CEO of LioniX International.

Source: Surfix