Life Technologies

Life Technologies Corporation was a United States biotechnology company that supplied molecular-biology reagents, genetic-analysis systems, cell-culture products, laboratory instruments, and related consumables. It was established in November 2008 through the approximately $6.7 billion merger of Invitrogen Corporation and Applied Biosystems Inc. The combination joined Invitrogen's strong positions in life-science reagents, cell culture, molecular biology, and research consumables with Applied Biosystems' established franchises in DNA sequencing, genetic analysis, PCR, and analytical instrumentation. The company inherited a substantial technology base from both predecessors. At formation, the combined business had annual sales of roughly $3.5 billion, approximately 9,500 employees, and more than 3,600 licenses and patents. Its portfolio served academic laboratories, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, hospitals, clinical laboratories, government agencies, agricultural researchers, and industrial testing organizations. Major product families included Invitrogen molecular-biology reagents, GIBCO cell-culture media and supplements, Applied Biosystems genetic-analysis instruments, and Ion Torrent next-generation sequencing platforms. The Life Technologies name had earlier roots in the history of Invitrogen. GIBCO, or Grand Island Biological Company, was established in New York around 1960. GIBCO merged with Bethesda Research Laboratories in 1983, and the resulting company adopted the Life Technologies name. Invitrogen acquired that business in 2000 and subsequently retired the name. The 2008 merger revived it as the corporate identity for the combined Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems operations. The naming history also produced a separate dispute because Life Technologies (India) Private Limited, established in 2002, asserted rights in the same corporate name. One of the company's most visible strategic areas was semiconductor-based sequencing. The acquisition of Ion Torrent by Life Technologies expanded the company's next-generation sequencing offering and led to the development and commercialization of the Ion Personal Genome Machine and Ion Proton systems. The Ion Proton platform was designed to make whole-genome and exome-scale sequencing more accessible through a relatively compact benchtop workflow. Its brand language and industrial design were developed by RKS Design and received design recognition. Life Technologies also pursued clinical and translational applications. In 2013, it partnered with Boston Children's Hospital on Claritas Genomics, a project intended to combine hospital genetic-testing expertise with Life Technologies' sequencing technology. Claritas brought together resources and personnel associated with the hospital's Genetic Diagnostic Laboratory and was designed to support a broad menu of genetic tests, including assays built around the Ion Proton platform. The company remained independent for only about five years. In December 2013, Thermo Fisher Scientific agreed to acquire Life Technologies for approximately $13.6 billion, including assumed debt. The transaction closed in February 2014. Life Technologies' businesses were subsequently integrated into Thermo Fisher Scientific, where many of its product families and technologies continued under Thermo Fisher, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Gibco, and Ion Torrent branding. Life Technologies therefore survives principally as a historical corporate identity and as a predecessor to important Thermo Fisher life-sciences franchises.

Life Technologies was formed in November 2008 when Invitrogen Corporation and Applied Biosystems Inc. combined in a transaction valued at approximately $6.7 billion. The merger created a substantial supplier to the global life-sciences market. Invitrogen contributed molecular-biology reagents, cell-culture products, laboratory consumables, and research technologies, while Applied Biosystems contributed sequencing, PCR, genetic-analysis, and analytical-instrument businesses. Together, the companies reported combined sales of about $3.5 billion and employed approximately 9,500 people at the time of formation. The corporate name was not entirely new. GIBCO, the Grand Island Biological Company, had been founded in New York around 1960 and became a major supplier of biological materials. In 1983, GIBCO merged with Bethesda Research Laboratories, a reagent company, and the combined organization used the Life Technologies name. Invitrogen acquired Life Technologies in 2000 and discontinued the name as a standalone corporate identity. Following the 2008 merger with Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen revived Life Technologies as the name of the enlarged company. The use of the name was later disputed by Life Technologies (India) Private Limited, which had been established in 2002 and claimed rights in the brand. After its formation, Life Technologies operated from Carlsbad, California, as a multinational supplier to research, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, clinical, agricultural, and government laboratories. Its strategy centered on providing complete workflows rather than isolated products. Reagents, media, sample-preparation products, amplification systems, sequencing platforms, genetic-analysis instruments, software, and consumables could be used together across research and diagnostic environments. Sequencing was a prominent area of development. Life Technologies commercialized the Ion Torrent technology and expanded its next-generation sequencing portfolio with the Ion Personal Genome Machine and Ion Proton Sequencer. Unlike conventional sequencing approaches that detect fluorescent signals, Ion Torrent systems used changes in hydrogen-ion concentration associated with nucleotide incorporation. The platform was promoted as a compact and potentially scalable approach to targeted, exome, and whole-genome sequencing. RKS Design developed the Ion Proton brand language and industrial design, which received design recognition. The company also sought to move sequencing into clinical and translational testing. In 2013, Life Technologies and Boston Children's Hospital launched Claritas Genomics. The venture combined hospital genetic-diagnostics knowledge, laboratory resources, and personnel with Life Technologies sequencing technology. Boston Children's Genetic Diagnostic Laboratory had a CLIA-certified testing operation and a substantial menu of genetic tests, providing a foundation for the development of broader molecular-diagnostic offerings. Life Technologies' independent period ended soon afterward. In December 2013, Thermo Fisher Scientific agreed to purchase the company for approximately $13.6 billion, including assumed debt. The acquisition closed in February 2014. Thermo Fisher integrated Life Technologies' operations and technologies into its wider portfolio, while retaining or developing several established commercial identities, including Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Gibco, and Ion Torrent. The standalone Life Technologies corporation consequently became defunct, although its products, intellectual property, facilities, and brands continued to influence Thermo Fisher's life-sciences business. The company's later history also included litigation inherited from predecessor companies. In a patent dispute involving Life Technologies as the successor to Applera-related businesses, a Connecticut federal court found infringement and awarded royalty damages to Enzo Biochem, Enzo Life Sciences, and Yale University. The case concluded in January 2014, shortly before the Thermo Fisher transaction closed.

1. 2014Acquisition by Thermo Fisher closes

   Life Technologies becomes part of Thermo Fisher Scientific and ceases to operate as an independent company.

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2. 2013Claritas Genomics project launches

   Life Technologies and Boston Children's Hospital establish Claritas Genomics to pursue genetic diagnostic testing using hospital expertise and Life Technologies sequencing systems.

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3. 2013Thermo Fisher announces acquisition agreement

   Thermo Fisher Scientific agrees to acquire Life Technologies for approximately $13.6 billion, including assumed debt.

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4. 2008Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems merge

   The approximately $6.7 billion merger creates Life Technologies Corporation, combining reagent, cell-culture, sequencing, and genetic-analysis businesses.

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5. 2000Invitrogen acquires Life Technologies

   Invitrogen acquires the earlier Life Technologies business and subsequently retires the name as a separate identity.

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6. 1983GIBCO merges with Bethesda Research Laboratories

   The merger creates a combined reagent business that adopts the Life Technologies name.

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7. 1960GIBCO is established

   Grand Island Biological Company, later known as GIBCO, is established in New York and becomes an important predecessor to the Life Technologies name and product heritage.

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A broad life-sciences tools supplier spanning research reagents, cell culture, genetic analysis, sequencing, and laboratory workflows. The company positioned itself as an integrated provider for academic, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, clinical, and government laboratories, combining the reagent and consumables heritage of Invitrogen with the instrumentation and genetic-analysis expertise of Applied Biosystems.

• Ion Torrent sequencing systemsNext-generation sequencing

  Ion Torrent systems are semiconductor-based next-generation sequencing platforms that detect nucleotide incorporation through associated changes in hydrogen-ion concentration. Life Technologies marketed the technology for targeted sequencing, exome analysis, research workflows, and increasingly broad genomic applications. The family included the Ion Personal Genome Machine and the larger Ion Proton Sequencer.

• Ion Proton SequencerNext-generation sequencing instrument

  The Ion Proton Sequencer was a benchtop sequencing platform designed to support higher-throughput applications than the earlier Personal Genome Machine. Its compact workflow and semiconductor detection architecture were intended to lower barriers to genomic sequencing in research and translational laboratories. The platform was also central to Life Technologies' clinical and diagnostic-development strategy.

• Applied Biosystems genetic-analysis systemsGenetic analysis and molecular diagnostics

  Inherited from Applied Biosystems, these systems covered DNA sequencing, fragment analysis, PCR, quantitative PCR, and related molecular workflows. They provided Life Technologies with established instrumentation and consumables used in research, clinical laboratories, forensic science, pharmaceutical development, and other analytical settings.

• Invitrogen reagentsResearch reagents

  Invitrogen supplied a wide range of molecular-biology reagents, antibodies, nucleic-acid products, cloning and expression tools, transfection products, and laboratory consumables. These products formed one of the core reagent businesses brought into Life Technologies through the Invitrogen merger and remained important after integration into Thermo Fisher.

• Gibco cell-culture productsCell culture

  Gibco products included cell-culture media, sera, supplements, reagents, and related materials used in academic research, biopharmaceutical production, cell and gene therapy development, and clinical research. The portfolio traces back to the GIBCO business that helped establish the historical Life Technologies name.

• 2013Claritas Genomics partnership

  United States · Clinical genetics · Molecular diagnostics

  Life Technologies partnered with Boston Children's Hospital to establish Claritas Genomics, combining hospital diagnostic expertise and genetic-testing resources with Life Technologies sequencing technology. The initiative aimed to broaden the availability of genomic tests and translate sequencing into clinical applications.

  Outcome. Claritas Genomics was established as a separate venture; the broader Life Technologies business was acquired by Thermo Fisher Scientific the following year.

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• 2013Expand sequencing into clinical geneticsStrategy

  Life Technologies sought to extend its sequencing technology beyond research markets and into genetic diagnostics and translational medicine.

  What changed. The company partnered with Boston Children's Hospital to create Claritas Genomics and support a menu of genetic tests using Life Technologies sequencing platforms.

  Aftermath. The partnership created a clinical-genomics venture, although Life Technologies was acquired by Thermo Fisher Scientific before the strategy could mature under an independent corporate structure.

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• 2013Accept Thermo Fisher acquisition offerM&A

  Thermo Fisher sought to strengthen its position in life-sciences research tools and add Life Technologies' reagents, instruments, sequencing platforms, and consumables.

  What changed. Life Technologies agreed to be acquired by Thermo Fisher Scientific for approximately $13.6 billion, including assumed debt.

  Aftermath. The transaction closed in 2014, ending Life Technologies' status as an independent company and placing its major brands and technologies within Thermo Fisher.

  Acquisition value. $13.6 billion (2013 announced; 2014 completed)

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• 2008Combine Invitrogen and Applied BiosystemsM&A

  The two companies held complementary positions in life-sciences tools: Invitrogen was particularly strong in reagents and cell culture, while Applied Biosystems had major sequencing and genetic-analysis businesses.

  What changed. The companies completed an approximately $6.7 billion merger and adopted Life Technologies as the corporate name.

  Aftermath. The transaction created an integrated supplier with roughly $3.5 billion in combined sales and approximately 9,500 employees at formation.

  Transaction value. $6.7 billion (2008 merger)

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• 2014Patent-infringement judgment involving predecessor businessesControversy

  A Connecticut federal court case involving Life Technologies as the successor to predecessor businesses concluded with findings related to patent infringement. Enzo Biochem, Enzo Life Sciences, and Yale University received approximately $48 million in royalty damages, and reporting described a total penalty exceeding $60 million.

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• 2014Thermo Fisher completes acquisition of Life Technologies

  The transaction closed, ending Life Technologies' existence as an independent public company and integrating its operations into Thermo Fisher Scientific.

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• 2013Life Technologies partners with Boston Children's Hospital on Claritas Genomics

  The partnership sought to develop and commercialize genetic diagnostic testing by combining hospital laboratory expertise with Life Technologies sequencing technology.

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• 2013Thermo Fisher Scientific agrees to acquire Life Technologies

  Thermo Fisher announced an agreement valued at approximately $13.6 billion, including assumed debt, to acquire Life Technologies and expand its life-sciences tools portfolio.

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• 2008Life Technologies is created through the merger of Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems

  The merger formed a large life-sciences tools company combining Invitrogen's reagents and cell-culture businesses with Applied Biosystems' sequencing and genetic-analysis activities.

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1. Life Technologies
2. Thermo Fisher Scientific to Acquire Life Technologies for $13.6 Billion
3. Thermo Fisher Scientific Completes Acquisition of Life Technologies