Life science reagents company Abcam said today that it has entered an agreement to acquire antibody firm AxioMx.
 

The company will purchase AxioMx for $20 million upfront followed by additional performance-based payments totaling up to $25 million, which will be made over five years and will be based upon successful completion of commercial and technical milestones.
 

Abcam said that it plans to use AxioMx's technology to develop highly validated recombinant antibodies to add to its existing catalogue.
 

Launched in March 2012, AxioMx offers custom recombinant antibody development with the ultimate aim of delivering antibodies on a timescale similar to oligos or DNA sequence information. As of September, the company was able to deliver antibodies internally within 19 days and to external customers within five weeks.
 

"The acquisition of AxioMx is in line with our strategy of acquiring businesses which enable Abcam to increase the supply of high-quality products generated from our own innovation, and allows us to respond more quickly to our customers' needs," Abcam CEO Alan Hirzel said in a statement.