Roche Snaps Up Molecular Diagnostics Maker GeneWEAVE BioSciences

Swiss healthcare giant Roche has inked a definitive agreement to acquire GeneWEAVE BioSciences for up to $425 million in cash and milestone payments.

Under the deal announced Thursday, Roche will pay GeneWEAVE shareholders $190 million upfront and up to $235 million as unspecified milestones are met.

The purchase gives Roche access to GeneWEAVE’s Smarticles technology, designed to identify multidrug-resistant organisms and assess their antibiotic susceptibility directly from clinical samples. An initial product, the vivoDx, is being evaluated in a multicenter clinical trial in the U.S., Roche says.

“This technology has the potential to provide healthcare professionals access to quick and accurate diagnoses that can lead to rapid, informed treatment decisions,” says Roche Diagnostics CEO Roland Diggelmann.

Once the deal closes, GeneWEAVE will be integrated into Roche Molecular Diagnostics. — Meg Bryant