Bionique CEO Gladis Zamparo, ViruSure CEO Andy Bailey, Bionique Chief Scientific Officer Jill Mariano and Patrick Gurgel of VP Transition Management & Technical Strategy Asahi Kasei Bioprocess America stand in front of Bionique’s laboratory building in Lake Clear in 2021. (Photo provided — Ami Parekh)

SARANAC LAKE — Bionique, a Saranac Lake-based testing laboratory with a specialty in keeping medicines safe from bacteria, was acquired on Wednesday by Asahi Kasei, a Japanese chemical company. Bionique CEO Gladis Zamparo hopes the acquisition will help her company expand locally and increase its global reach.

Zamparo said Bionique has been looking to expand recently, and this acquisition allows them to meet the increased demand for its niche service of mycoplasma testing. Bionique has been growing at a rate between 10% and 20% over the past three years, she said.

According to Bionique Chief Scientific Officer Jill Mariano, the cell and gene therapy industry is “exploding exponentially” as new medicines move from discovery stages to clinical trials to commercialization. Bionique offers specialized bacteria testing for all the stages of drugs’ development and manufacturing, which is mandatory under U.S. and global laws.

Bionique ensures the safety of these products for their manufacturers, making sure they are not contaminated by mycoplasma bacteria, which could cause illness in the people who take them.

The 100% acquisition by Asahi Kasei Medical’s Bioprocess Division allows Bionique to join a larger medical group with more financial resources and a similar vision, Zamparo said.

Bionique will continue under its existing brand, she said, and stay local to Saranac Lake. It will keep its current clients and add new ones. Asahi Kasei Medical is promising local “facility and employment expansion.”

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Humble beginnings

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Bionique has been a family-owned biotech company for 31 years. Founded by Daniel and Judith Lundin in 1990, the company was one of numerous startup biotech companies cultivated at the former W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center in Lake Placid.

Earlier this year, Judith recalled how Bionique quickly outgrew its first home, a cabin on the Bloomingdale Road outside of town, and moved to Harrietstown’s business park in Lake Clear.

Bionique expanded again last year, opening a second location on Main Street by the village’s Saranac River dam in August 2020. At that time, Zamparo predicted “double-digit growth” in Bionique’s future.

Bionique started with “three-and-a-half” employees, according to Judith. Currently, it has 39 employees with three open positions.

Zamparo said she hopes to employ 50 people by the end of 2023.

“Then, the sky’s the limit,” she said.

All this expansion will be local to Saranac Lake, she said.

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What’s a mycoplasma?

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Mycoplasma are bacteria that line the throat and lungs and cause respiratory illness — most commonly the illness known as “walking pneumonia.”

They don’t have cell walls, so they’re immune to antibiotics and often grow in antibiotic cell cultures grown in labs for study or production. Mycoplasma is referred to as a “covert contaminant.”

According to Bionique’s website, mycoplasma was discovered in 1956, when contamination was common — between 57% to 92% of cultures were contaminated with the bacteria.

Zamparo said Bionique is the only lab in the U.S. solely dedicated to testing for mycoplasmas, and one of only two with such a focus on the planet.

Competitors offer mycoplasma testing in their services, but she said Bionique’s 30 years of institutional knowledge set them apart, which made them an attractive acquisition for Asahi Kasei Medical.

“We are recognized as a global leader in mycoplasma testing,” Zamparo said.

She said she’s proud of Bionique’s niche expertise in this area.

Mariano said this testing is mandatory worldwide.

“It’s is required as part of the development and manufacturing of biotheraputics,” she said.

What are biotheraputics? Vaccines, cancer treatments, antibiotics and lots of other common drugs and medicines.

Zamparo said Bionique serves eight of the world’s largest biopharmaceutical companies. She estimated that half of the general population has taken some drug, treatment, medication or vaccine which was tested in a Bionique lab.

Mariano said every time a manufacturer creates a new batch of a drug, it sends a sample out for mycoplasma contamination testing. She said the Saranac Lake lab is receiving and sending samples every day.

“We’re UPS’ best client,” Zamparo said.

It’s a mutual relationship. She said Bionique heavily relies on shipping, and is happy with UPS’ reliable service, come snow or rain or heat or gloom of night.

“That’s the one greatest thing that has allowed us to remain in this area, is really the level of service,” she said.

The acquisition will also allow Bionique to combine its services with the Austria-based viral and prion safety testing company ViruSure.