Spatial biology companies Vizgen and Ultivue merge amid ongoing lawsuits

Ryan Cross
Senior Science Correspondent

Vizgen and Ultivue, two companies at the forefront of developing technologies that allow scientists to map the molecular makeup of cells in exquisite detail, are joining forces.The merger, announced Wednesday, creates the biggest private company in the emerging spatial biology field. The startups have raised more than $256 million total over the years.

That sum doesn’t include a new Series D financing for Vizgen. The company would not disclose the amount raised but said it was backed by ARCH Venture Partners, Northpond Ventures and Tao Capital Partners. Those three firms have also previously invested in Ultivue.

Vizgen’s instruments map which RNA molecules are present in individual cells across a tissue, a technique broadly known as spatial transcriptomics. Ultivue sells kits to detect up to a dozen different proteins on a single tissue sample, which is one version of a method known as spatial proteomics.

Scientists are using the techniques to produce kaleidoscopic images revealing the complexity of the brain, the immune system and the tumor microenvironment. It’s leading to new hypotheses about what goes awry in Alzheimer’s disease, autoimmune diseases, cancer and more. Researchers hope the approaches will lead to new drugs and diagnostics. Yet the booming field of spatial biology has been rocked by a series of lawsuits, including one directed at Vizgen.

The California company 10X Genomics has sued Vizgen for infringing its patents. Vizgen has denied the allegation, countersued, and accused 10X of trying to quash competition with monopolistic practices.

In a written statement, Vizgen told Endpoints News that the merger “does not relate to our ongoing litigation” and that the company will continue to defend its technology. A trial is scheduled for early 2025.

“Customers can expect continued access to the same products and services with added benefits from the combined expertise and technology platforms of both Vizgen and Ultivue,” the company told Endpoints.

Vizgen and Ultivue are based just blocks apart in the same industrial park on the western outskirts of Cambridge, MA. The companies will maintain their presence there, as well as Vizgen’s manufacturing facility in nearby Waltham, MA. Vizgen said that it hasn’t announced layoffs.

Ultivue CEO Rob Carson will run the combined company, which will operate under the Vizgen name. Vizgen CEO Terry Lo will remain on the company’s board. Carson and Lo declined interview requests through a spokesperson.Earlier this year, NanoString, another spatial biology company, declared bankruptcy in the midst of its own legal dispute with 10X.

10X, NanoString and Vizgen all sell instruments for spatial transcriptomics. The details of each company’s approach vary, but all of them give researchers a picture of how gene expression varies from cell-to-cell across a tissue.

Some academic scientists who rely on spatial biology instruments from these companies have also accused 10X of trying to stifle innovation — 10X has denied it — and voiced concerns that their investments in expensive instruments from NanoString and Vizgen will be useless if the companies fold.

NanoString CEO Brad Grey told Endpoints in April that the company’s debt and legal losses made it impossible to raise money to keep the company afloat and cover the $31 million in damages that US courts said it owed 10X. In May, the scientific instrument company Bruker said it would acquire NanoString for $392.6 million in cash.

On Wednesday, Bruker announced a new division of the company focused on spatial biology that will continue to offer NanoString instruments and reagents alongside contract research services.