Vienna– Bruker Corporation announced a strategic expansion into next-generation sequencing (NGS) for microbiology and hospital-acquired infection (HAI) tracing, unveiling new solutions at the ESCMID Global 2025 conference.
The company has acquired a majority stake in Ridom GmbH, a German bioinformatics firm specializing in genomic bacterial strain analysis. Ridom’s flagship software, SeqSphere+™, supports multilocus sequence typing (MLST), core genome MLST, and real-time detection of clonal and plasmid transmission using NGS data from various sequencing platforms.
This investment enables Bruker to offer a hybrid workflow for hospital hygiene testing that begins with its rapid and cost-effective IR Biotyper® for initial HAI outbreak detection and triage. Select cases can then undergo in-depth genomic analysis using NGS and SeqSphere+, providing confirmation and phylogenetic insights. The company also integrates this with its widely used MALDI Biotyper® system for microbial species identification.
“The new solution complements fast microbial identification with powerful genomic insights,” said Dr. Wolfgang Pusch, President of Bruker’s Microbiology & Infection Diagnostics Division. “This combined IR Biotyper and NGS reflex testing approach creates a unique and efficient epidemiological workflow for infection control teams.”
Professor Dag Harmsen, founder and Managing Director of Ridom, welcomed the partnership: “We are excited to join Bruker’s global microbiology team. This collaboration ensures continued support for our customers and opens new growth opportunities.”
Bruker’s new offering is intended for research use only and is expected to enhance hospital response to infection outbreaks by streamlining microbial identification and genomic tracking. The financial terms of the Ridom investment were not disclosed.
