YORK based medical diagnostic company Abingdon Health has acquired a university spin-off business in a deal worth £2.1 million.

Abingdon says the take over of Serascience was facilitated through fundraising from current shareholders and the deal represented an "important step forward" in its strategy to create a leading innovative global diagnostic company.

Serascience was formed in April 2011 through Abingdon Health’s and the University of Birmingham’s joint venture, Bioscience Ventures Limited (BSVL), which develops early stage diagnostics opportunities to the point at which they can be licensed, acquired, or sold as a service.

The acquisition comes as Serascience is undergoing beta-trials for Seralite, a rapid test for the diagnosis and monitoring of myeloma, and MGUS progression, in a market is estimated to be worth more than £200 million per annum.

Since Abingdon Health’s formation in 2008 the company, based in Sand Hutton, has completed a series of selective acquisition and licensing transactions to bring together intellectual property, diagnostic platforms, manufacturing and created a sales and marketing structure.

Abingdon co-founder and chief executive Dr Chris Hand said: "The company has made strong progress in its strategy to create a fully integrated, specialist diagnostics business.

"The acquisition of Serascience is the latest success in this strategy.

"We are delighted to continue to receive support from our shareholders and we are pleased that the University of Birmingham is now a shareholder of Abingdon Health, further strengthening our partnership.

"The additional investment will be used to continue to expand our development programmes and scale up of manufacture. I should like to thank our shareholders for their continuing support."