Sygnature Discovery, a drug discovery CRO, acquired NuChem Sciences, adding integrated drug discovery phase services.

The transaction expands Sygnature’s global footprint and business operations with discovery expertise in the North American market. Together the companies provide drug discovery expertise to support customer programs from target validation through to candidate selection, combining North American and UK operations.

NuChem Sciences employs more than 300 staff across centers of excellence in Montreal and Quebec City, Canada, where the company will continue to operate and drive further market expansion across North America.

NuChem Sciences provides discovery services across medicinal, synthetic, scale-up, process and computational chemistry, as well as DMPK, in vitro biology and in vivo pharmacology. NuChem also provides protein chemistry services and offers knowledge-based expertise in structural biology at the initial stages of drug discovery to global biotech and pharmaceutical companies.

Marc Lebel, president, and chairman at NuChem Sciences said, “Our company goals and values fit perfectly with those of Sygnature in becoming a global leader in drug discovery services. We are delighted to become an integral part of the Sygnature Group, allowing us to leverage our deep scientific expertise and presence across North America and Europe, to the benefit of customers and employees.”

Simon Hirst, CEO at Sygnature Discovery, said, “This acquisition represents a pivotal milestone in the Sygnature growth plan, allowing us to deliver better discovery solutions to customers around the world. The addition of NuChem Sciences greatly enhances Sygnature Discovery’s offering, making us a highly differentiated and integrated drug discovery partner with unrivalled scale and range. NuChem is a like-minded business that complements Sygnature’s existing services, towards our joint mission of improving the world’s health.”