NEXUS Biosystems, a leading innovator and worldwide provider of automated sample management systems, today announced the acquisition of Aurora Biotechnologies of Carlsbad, CA, a leading developer of proprietary high-performance microplates for use in sample storage, high-throughput screening, and cellular imaging.

Combining the technologies and personnel of Aurora with Nexus will enable us to provide a wider spectrum of products for our current and future customers around the world, said John Lillig, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nexus. With the recent launch of our automated -80C BioStore line of sample management systems and our new XPeel microplate de-sealer, 2009 has been a strong growth year for Nexus. As we head into 2010 with the Aurora technologies, we are very excited about the opportunity to expand our product reach beyond automated sample management into high-throughput biochemical, cell-based, and genomic screening applications.

Aurora serves the discovery research markets with unique, optically pure consumable microplate products that enable high-throughput analysis of chemical compounds and cellular assays. Aurora provides a broad range of high performance microplate designs, including 96-well, 384-well, 1,536-well and 3,456-well plates. These products are used daily in thousands of experiments in both private and public research institutions around the world. Peter Coassin, President and Chief Technical Officer of Aurora, added Auroras legacy in understanding key processes in assay technologies and consumables is a great fit with the Nexus sample management and sample processing technologies. The combination of the two companies is timely as the research market is looking for cost-saving, high quality, efficiency-enhancing solutions.