A Medical Device Daily

The board of Q-Med (Stockholm, Sweden) reported that it has received a tender offer from Ivytan, indirectly owned by EQT V and Lyftet Holding, a company controlled by Q-Med CEO Bengt gerup, for the acquisition of all shares in Q-Med for 39 SEK ($5) cash per share.

The shares in Q-Med are listed on Nasdaq OMX Stockholm AB (OMX), the Nordic List, Mid Cap.

Q-Med's board said it was informed of the offer over the weekend. The board said it will evaluate all aspects of Ivytan's offer and will make any decisions that the situation may require.

Q-Med is a biotechnology/medical device company that primarily makes medical implants, a majority of which are based on the company's Nasha technology for the production of stabilized non-animal hyaluronic acid.

The product portfolio today includes Restylane for filling lines and folds, contouring and creating volume in the face; Macrolane for body contouring; Durolane for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the hip and knee joints; Deflux for the treatment of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR, a malformation of the urinary bladder) in children; and Solesta for the treatment of fecal incontinence.

Cepheid (Sunnyvale, California) reported that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Stretton Scientific (Stretton, UK), a privately held distributor of scientific diagnostic, measuring and monitoring equipment.

Cepheid will pay about 1.2 million ($1.9 million) in cash to acquire Stretton. The transaction is expected to close early this month, subject to customary closing conditions, and it is not expected to have a material impact on Cepheid's 4Q08 results.

Stretton currently distributes Cepheid's SmartCycler System, among other diagnostic and life science products, to a broad group of medical customers including the National Health Service, medical universities and commercial customers.

"Consistent with Cepheid's strategy to invest in sales and marketing capabilities to support national market development, the acquisition of Stretton Scientific is expected to augment our newly established UK-based direct sales team," said Cepheid CEO John Bishop. "With our industry-leading GeneXpert System, Cepheid is committed to supporting the UK's efforts to minimize negative patient outcomes and reduce financial costs associated with HAIs, and we are very pleased to be building out our infrastructure to support this rapidly expanding opportunity."

Cepheid is an on-demand molecular diagnostics company that develops systems for genetic analysis in the clinical, industrial and biothreat markets.