BIOTECHNOLOGY : Nichols Institute Buys Research, Development Lab

The Nichols Institute, which touts itself as providing super-specialized testing for a laundry list of medical services, has added a new bit of science fiction-like technology to its arsenal: chemically produced light to help detect diseases.

It’s called direct label chemiluminescence, a process that was developed by London Diagnostics in Minnesota. The San Juan Capistrano company was so excited about the technology that it bought the research and development laboratory.

Corporate secretary Marilyn Hauge said the $12.7-million all-stock deal, which involved the transfer of 1.3 million Nichols Institute shares to London Diagnostics stockholders, will save Nichols Institute a bundle.

By not having to develop its own chemiluminescence technology, which is used to detect diseases by tracing chemicals with light in a fashion similar to how fireflies glow, Nichols Institute can tap immediately into London Diagnostics’ institutional customer base of hospitals and medical centers throughout the United States. London Diagnostics, located in Eden Prairie, Minn., will retain its name, but is now a wholly owned subsidiary.