LAUSANNE, Switzerland, June 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

• Applicable to a wide variety of sample types to isolate bacteria, viruses, tumor cells, etc. 
• FibroTrap improves sensitivity and shortens time taken from sample collection to results  
• Spinomix to focus on the development of its flagship MagPhase technology 

Debiopharm International SA (Debiopharm), part of Debiopharm Group^™, a Swiss-based global biopharmaceutical company, and Spinomix, a Swiss technology platform company providing innovative sample processing solutions to the life sciences sector, today announced the acquisition by Debiopharm of Spinomix' FibroTrap sample processing technology. Commercial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

FibroTrap is a fibrinogen-based technology allowing the highly specific separation and efficient concentration of target molecules from liquid samples within a simple, routine sample-collection tube. This technology greatly simplifies the sample processing workflow, improves sensitivity and significantly shortens the time taken from sample collection to delivery of results. FibroTrap is applicable to a wide variety of matrices (blood, urine, swabs, food, etc.) to isolate a large spectrum of targets (bacteria, viruses, tumor cells, etc.) and hence could provide a breakthrough in sample processing applied to clinical diagnostics and the food industry

"This agreement reflects our long-held strategy to develop our technologies to a certain maturity before finding the best commercialization partner," stated Heiner Dreismann, Chairman of the Board. "We are delighted to have transferred FibroTrap to Debiopharm who will as of now continue with the development of FibroTrap technology, take it to market and realize its full potential in many different applications."

"We are enthusiastic about continuing the development of this potentially revolutionary sample preparation technology. This acquisition is in line with our continuing investment in cutting-edge diagnostic technologies and particularly with our interest in rapid diagnostics for efficient use of anti-infective agents," added Thierry Mauvernay, Delegate of the Board of Debiopharm Group.

"The team at Spinomix is very proud to have developed this novel technology which will greatly improve the sensitivity and time taken for diagnosing samples by doctors and laboratories. This will undoubtedly pave the way to a new era in molecular diagnostics in which patients will benefit enormously from an enhanced process," said Nasri Nahas, Chief Executive Officer. "Spinomix is very pleased to have this technology now under Debiopharm's solid product development expertise, allowing Spinomix to focus on commercializing its flagship sample processing technology MagPhase that we continue to validate in partnership with key players in research and industry."

About Spinomix SA 

Spinomix is a Swiss technology platform company providing innovative sample processing solutions to the life sciences sector. Based at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), the company is building the new gold standard for sample processing of biochemical substances. Its products capture and extract samples at a quality and efficiency far superior to current practice, thus enabling more efficient diagnostics. The company's main focus is on applications which are critical for treatment decisions in a variety of human diseases.

Spinomix' products MagPhase™ and FibroTrap™ improve the sensitivity and time taken to obtain meaningful results from samples that are highly heterogeneous and notoriously difficult to analyze (e.g. blood, urine, swabs and food matrices). The company development strategy is to conduct validation programmers of these products with key market players in research and industry with the goal of developing partnerships for their commercialization.

Further information is available at our website http://www.spinomix.com

About Debiopharm International SA 

Debiopharm Group^™ is a Swiss-based global biopharmaceutical group of four companies active in drug development, GMP manufacturing of proprietary drugs, diagnostics, and investments. Debiopharm International SA is focused on the development of prescription drugs that target unmet medical needs. The company in-licenses, develops promising drug candidates. The products are commercialized by pharmaceutical out-licensing partners to give access to the largest number of patients worldwide.

For more information, please visit http://www.debiopharm.com

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Debiopharm International SA Contact
Christelle Tur
Communication Coordinator
christelle.tur@debiopharm.com
Tel: +41(0)21-321-01-11

Additional Media Contacts
In London
Maitland
Martin Barrows
mbarrow@maitland.co.uk
Tel: +44(0)20-7395-0444

In New York
Russo Partners, LLC
Marissa Goberdhan
Account Executive
marissa.goberdhan@russopartnersllc.com
Tel: +1(0)212-845-4253

Contact Spinomix SA
Nasri Nahas
CEO
contact@spinomix.com
Tel: +41(0)21-693-92

Media
Nick Miles
Cabinet Privé de Conseils
Geneva, Switzerland
miles@cpc-pr.com
Tel: +41(0)22-321-45-40
Tel: +41(0)79-678-76-26

Edward Agne
Communications Strategy Group
Cambridge, Mass, USA
edagne@comstratgroup.com
Tel: +1(0)781-631-3117
Tel: +1(0)781-888-0099

SOURCE Debiopharm Group