Acquisition Strengthens Illumina’s Clinical Readiness

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 16, 2014-- Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) today announced that it has acquired Myraqa, a regulatory and quality consulting firm specializing in IVDs, particularly companion diagnostics. Led by founder and CEO  Mya Thomae, Myraqa focuses on regulatory strategy and application support, including PMAs, pre-submissions, IDEs, 510(k)s, de novo 510(k)s, and EU technical files. The acquisition will bolster Illumina’s in-house capabilities for clinical readiness and help prepare for its next growth phase in regulated markets.

“Under Mya Thomae, Myraqa is recognized as the leader in regulatory and quality matters in molecular diagnostics,” said  Rick Klausner, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of Illumina. “With Myraqa, Illumina will continue to pave the way for the use of genomic technology, including next-generation sequencing, in regulated markets while also driving standards for use in the clinic. Mya will lead Illumina’s regulatory strategy and execution, providing us with a world-class regulatory organization and is part of our commitment to making Illumina a pre-eminent clinical company.”

“Illumina is at the forefront of driving next-generation sequencing to the clinic and I look forward to being a key part of this market transformation,” said  Mya Thomae, CEO of Myraqa. “Illumina exemplifies many of the values that have successfully guided Myraqa and I’m excited for our team to share in this opportunity to shape the future of medicine.”

As part of Illumina, Myraqa’s team will continue to report to Thomae. Thomae will report to Illumina’s CMO Dr. Klausner as the Vice President of Regulatory Affairs.

“We expect Mya and her team to complete existing programs and to continue to work with selected third-parties on sequencing-based projects,” added Dr. Klausner.

Myraqa is based in Redwood Shores, California and was founded in 1998. It comprises leading experts in regulatory, quality, clinical, biostatistics and development.

The financial impact of this transaction was contemplated in the 2014 financial guidance released on April 22, 2014.

About Illumina

Illumina (www.illumina.com) is a leading developer, manufacturer, and marketer of life science tools and integrated systems for the analysis of genetic variation and function. We provide innovative sequencing and array-based solutions for genotyping, copy number variation analysis, methylation studies, gene expression profiling, and low-multiplex analysis of DNA, RNA, and protein. We also provide tools and services that are fueling advances in consumer genomics and diagnostics. Our technology and products accelerate genetic analysis research and its application, paving the way for molecular medicine and ultimately transforming healthcare.