The company did not disclose the purchase price, although it said that the deal had already closed.

BioDynamics is a specialist provider of metabolism, bioanalytical and radiochemistry services to the global biopharma industry. The firm is 15 years old, with 100 employees and annual revenues of over $7m.

"We have experienced considerable growth in demand for the drug development

services we offer", said Paul Cowan, chairman and CEO of Quotient.

"The combination with BioDynamics will allow Quotient BioResearch to both increase capacity and extend the range of services it offers".

Cowan added that the acquisition complements "very well" the drug development capabilities of its existing businesses in this area, HFL and GR Micro.

These are the businesses that Quotient acquired last year - in September it gained UK-based GR Micro, a provider of microbiology and molecular biology services with a particular emphasis on new antibiotic development. In January, it acquired HFL, a major UK provider of drug development services.

BioDynamics represents the third acquisition Quotient has made in the drug development services sector over the past 12 months. Further acquisitions are anticipated with a view to offering clients a broader, unified range of services, the firm said.

Meanwhile, "we will be making major investments at both BioDynamics and Quotient BioResearch", said Cowan.