PerkinElmer acquires antibodies developer BioLegend

PerkinElmer (NYSE: PKI) agreed to acquire San Diego-based antibodies developer BioLegend for $5.25 billion in cash ($2.2b) and stock.

Why it matters: Antibodies have been key research tools for studying COVID-19 and its troublesome variants.

The bottom line: "PerkinElmer, which sells an array of laboratory equipment, is eager to expand into selling antibodies to researchers. That’s because these Y-shaped proteins, made by the immune system to latch onto specific molecules, can be adapted for a virtually unlimited range of experiments, from making cells light up under a microscope to isolating and studying specific cell types." — Jonathan Wosen, San Diego Union-Tribune