Sorenson Genomics adds Identigene

Salt Lake-based Sorenson Genomics, known for its DNA ancestral testing, announced Monday it had acquired Identigene, a Houston-based DNA testing laboratory.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Identigene serves two major DNA-testing market segments. The first is forensics, made up of mostly criminal casework for public crime laboratories. The second is relatedness testing, which involves assessing paternity and other family relationships.

Douglass Fogg, chief operating officer of Sorenson Genomics, said in a prepared statement that both Sorenson Genomics and Identigene are nationally recognized DNA laboratories and have two of the most experienced forensic DNA teams in the country.

"By merging our two premier companies, both the forensics and the relatedness DNA testing industries will benefit," Fogg said.

Combined, Fogg added, the companies will create one of the largest players in the human identification and relatedness DNA testing services industry.

Sorenson Genomics, owned by Utah billionaire James LeVoy Sorenson, has already been heavily involved in DNA analysis. Under its Sorenson Forensics division, the company uses DNA testing to help solve murders, rapes and burglaries.

In 2005, Sorenson Genomics helped the Thai government identify the remains of people who died in the massive tsunami that struck on Dec. 26, 2004. More than 1,200 positive identifications were made at Sorenson Genomics, according Fogg.

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