Bayer Acquires Protein Firm Direvo

Bayer has acquired Direvo Biotech, a drug discovery firm specializing in protein engineering, in a cash deal valued at approximately $300 million. Direvo's technology platform has been applied to a range of proteins, including therapeutic antibodies and proteases that will be added to the preclinical pipeline of Bayer Schering Pharma. Direvo's Cologne, Germany, site will become a fourth center of biologics expertise for Bayer, which operates two other facilities in Germany and one in the U.S. Direvo's industrial biotechnology business has been sold to a group of investors, who will develop its expertise in the food, feed, and biorefinery markets.