MilliporeSigma Expands Distribution Agreement with Public Health England

- MilliporeSigma to become global distributor of the European Bank for induced pluripotent Stem Cells, excluding Japan

- Extension of relationship with Public Health England for global distribution of cost-efficient, authenticated cell lines

BILLERICA, Mass., June 15, 2017 /CNW/ -- MilliporeSigma today announced an expansion of its distribution alliance with Public Health England (PHE) to include the European Bank for induced pluripotent Stem Cells (EBiSC)—a comprehensive iPS cell bank of more than 300 quality-controlled, disease-relevant, patient-derived human iPSC lines.

MilliporeSigma provides a complete solution for the iPSC workflow, including novel reprogramming kits, iPSC culture media and stem cell antibodies and characterization kits. The addition of the EBiSC portfolio strengthens MilliporeSigma's existing distribution relationship with PHE as a distributor of its European Collection of Authenticated Cell Cultures (ECACC) portfolio.

"This partnership will give customers greater access to a comprehensive suite of human iPSCs for disease modeling," said Udit Batra, CEO, MilliporeSigma. "This is a great addition to our authenticated cell line portfolio and strengthens our offering across the iPSC workflow."

Under the terms of the agreement, MilliporeSigma will employ its sales, marketing and e-commerce expertise to distribute the EBiSC Human iPS Cell Bank. The distribution agreement includes all geographies except Japan. Financial details were not disclosed.

Following the acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich by Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany in 2015, the global distribution agreement became an important part of the company's life science business, driving growth and offering premier brand tools for disease modeling and drug screening.

EBiSC is a European public-private partnership project designed to address the increasing demand by stem cell researchers for quality-controlled, disease-relevant, research-grade iPSC lines, data and cell services. Its goal is to establish a centralized European cell bank providing researchers across academia and industry with access to scalable, cost-efficient and consistent high-quality tools for development of new medicines.

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About the Life Science Business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
The life science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as MilliporeSigma in the U.S. and Canada, has 19,000 employees and 65 manufacturing sites worldwide, with a portfolio of more than 300,000 products enabling scientific discovery. Udit Batra is the global chief executive officer of MilliporeSigma.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany completed its $17 billion acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich in November 2015, creating a leader in the $125 billion global life science industry.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany is a leading company for innovative and top-quality high-tech products in healthcare, life science and performance materials. The company has six businesses – Biopharmaceuticals, Consumer Health, Allergopharma, Biosimilars, Life Science and Performance Materials – and generated sales of €15 billion in 2016. Around 50,000 employees work in 66 countries to improve the quality of life for patients, to foster the success of customers and to help meet global challenges.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany is the world's oldest pharmaceutical and chemical company – since 1668, the company has stood for innovation, business success and responsible entrepreneurship. Holding an approximately 70 percent interest, the founding family remains the majority owner of the company to this day. The company holds the global rights to the name and the trademark "Merck" internationally except for the United States and Canada, where the company operates as EMD Serono, MilliporeSigma and EMD Performance Materials.

SOURCE MilliporeSigma

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