Johnson & Johnson Buys Amic to Strengthen Its Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics Business

A Johnson & Johnson unit bought a Swedish company that develops technology for faster diagnostic tests of patient blood samples.

J&J, one of the world’s biggest drug and health product makers, said its Nordic AB unit, of Sollentuna, Sweden, purchased privately held Amic of Uppsala, Sweden. J&J hopes the acquisition will strengthen its Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics business.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but J&J said it expects to take a one-time, after-tax charge of about $40 million for in-process research in the second quarter, which ends June 30.

New Brunswick, N.J.-based Johnson & Johnson said that Amic’s technology, which allows patient testing at the bedside, in doctor’s offices and in other places outside laboratories, is an advance in a fast-growing area of diagnostics.

The Amic technology uses its patented “4castchip,” a microchip-based testing system that can give doctors test results rapidly — much faster than by sending them to a hospital’s central lab, for example. That can be crucial in making a rapid diagnosis in emergency departments and intensive care units.