GE Healthcare today announces it has made an offer to buy protein interaction analysis system provider Biacore International AB for approximately $390 million.

The systems that Biacore develop are important to biomarker and drug discovery and development. Biacore's systems are used in key areas, such as antibody characterization, biomarker discovery, small molecule characterization, biopharmaceutical development and production, where GE has a strong presence, according to a release.

Life sciences is a key area of growth for GE Healthcare, and Biacore is highly complementary and synergistic with our existing protein sciences business,” Joe Hogan, president and CEO, GE Healthcare. “We are extremely excited about Biacore's prospects and believe our joint offerings will create added value for our customers in biomedical and drug discovery research.

Biacore employs approximately 300 people worldwide, and operates R&D and manufacturing facilities in Uppsala, Sweden, where GE Healthcare Life Sciences is also headquartered. Upon completion of the agreement, GE Healthcare said it intends to combine Biacore with GE Healthcare Life Sciences in order to create a “center of excellence” in Protein Science in Uppsala.