Pierce Biotechnology Inc. is the ultimate origin of a number of products and product lines in the
Thermo Fisher Scientific research and development division, "Thermo Scientific Pierce Protein Biology." The company from which this division originated, the
Rockford, Illinois
Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, located in the far northern part of the state. Situated on the banks of the Rock River, Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County (a small portion of the city is located in Ogle County). ...
-based Pierce Chemical Company (PCC) was founded in 1948 when
Alan Pierce assumed active management of a company known as Midwest Extraction, which focused on isolating
chlorophyll
Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words , ("pale green") and , ("leaf"). Chlorophyll allow plants to a ...
from
alfalfa
Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, and silage, as w ...
(to take advantage of 1930s research arguing therapeutic uses for chlorophyll in infections, burns, and amputation).
In assuming leadership of the company, Pierce transitioned the company to being a manufacturer of fine
organic
Organic may refer to:
* Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity
* Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ
Chemistry
* Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...
chemicals, giving it the PCC name in 1950. Among other advances, PCC was the first commercial manufacturer of
ninhydrin
Ninhydrin (2,2-dihydroxyindane-1,3-dione) is an organic compound with the formula C6H4(CO)2C(OH)2. It is used to detect ammonia and amines. Upon reaction with these amines, ninhydrin gets converted into deep blue or purple derivatives, which are ...
for use in
amino acid
Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although hundreds of amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the alpha-amino acids, which comprise proteins. Only 22 alpha am ...
analysis. After the first several years, the company diversified into other products and markets. Roy Oliver succeeded Pierce as company president in 1965 (Pierce remaining affiliated with eponymous products and business units until his retirement in 1994). Under Oliver, PCC expanded its operations internationally, entering into agreements with European distributors. The company's focus began to shift in the 1970s from the manufacture of organic chemical products at scale, to research, development, and production, of high-purity reagents for biotechnology research at smaller scales—resulting in its name chance to Pierce Biotechnology (PBT). PBT became a subsidiary of
Perstorp Group in the Perstorp Life Science Division, was spun off as a component of this division as Perbio Science AB, which was subsequently acquired by
Fisher Scientific International in 2003.
Fisher merged with
Thermo Electron in 2006, bringing some former PCC and PBT product lines of Perbio Science AB under
Thermo Fisher Scientific management, as brands of its "Thermo Scientific Pierce Protein Biology" division.
Perstorp management
In 1983, Perstorp, a Sweden-based chemical company, purchased Pierce. Perstorp was a manufacturer of chemicals, resins, plastics, and laminates.
In 1985, researchers at Pierce Chemical Company, led by Paul K. Smith, published a method detailing the use of bicinchoninic acid (BCA) as a protein quantitation reagent. The
BCA protein assay method maintains the high sensitivity and low variability among proteins associated with the
Lowry protein assay
The Lowry protein assay is a biochemical assay for determining the total level of protein in a solution. The total protein concentration is exhibited by a color change of the sample solution in proportion to protein concentration, which can then be ...
, while providing increased tolerance to the presence of non-ionic detergents and buffer salts. The BCA assay has since become one of the most widely used methods of protein quantitation.
Pierce was recognized for its international marketing efforts in 1990 when it received the US President's "E" Award for success in exporting. Only 24 "E" awards were presented nationwide that year.
In 1995, Pierce Chemical Company introduced the patented
SuperSignal chemiluminescent
Chemiluminescence (also chemoluminescence) is the emission of light (luminescence) as the result of a chemical reaction. There may also be limited emission of heat. Given reactants A and B, with an excited intermediate ◊,
: + -> lozenge -> ...
substrate for the chemiluminescent detection of
biological
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary in ...
molecules such as
antibodies
An antibody (Ab), also known as an immunoglobulin (Ig), is a large, Y-shaped protein used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects such as pathogenic bacteria and viruses. The antibody recognizes a unique molecule of the ...
or
pharmaceuticals
A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and rel ...
. Chemiluminescence is the emission of
light
Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...
that occurs when a
chemical reaction
A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the IUPAC nomenclature for organic transformations, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that only involve the pos ...
(in this case, between the SuperSignal Substrate and the tagged biological molecule) yields light. Researchers preserve the light signal on
X-ray film
X-ray detectors are devices used to measure the flux, spatial distribution, spectrum, and/or other properties of X-rays.
Detectors can be divided into two major categories: imaging detectors (such as photographic plates and X-ray film (photograp ...
or read the signal directly using an imager. Use of chemiluminescent technology allows researchers to replace
radioactive
Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is consid ...
tracers for greater personal safety and much less ecological impact.
The introduction of SuperSignal Substrate was one of many product introductions that propelled Pierce Chemical Company to become a leader in the areas of
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
sample preparation, protein function and
modification, and protein detection. The company would soon change its name to Pierce Biotechnology, Inc. to reflect its focus and expertise on these growing areas.
In June 1998, Pierce's parent company, Perstorp AB, announced several organizational changes, including the establishment of the separate Perstorp Life Science Division, of which Pierce was a key player. In 1999, the Perstorp Life Science Division was spun off into its own company, Perbio Science AB. The new company was listed on the
Stockholm Stock Exchange O List in October 1999.
Fisher Scientific and subsequent management
In August 2003,
Fisher Scientific International announced its intent to purchase Perbio Science AB. In November 2006,
Thermo Electron and Fisher Scientific International merged to form
Thermo Fisher Scientific (TFS). Today, the company formerly known as Pierce Chemical Company and Pierce Biotechnology Inc. is the TFS research and development division, "Thermo Scientific Pierce Protein Biology".
References
{{reflist
External links
Pierce Protein Research ProductsPierce Antibodies
Biotechnology companies of the United States
Companies based in Rockford, Illinois
Chemical companies established in 1948
Biotechnology companies disestablished in 2003
1983 mergers and acquisitions
2003 mergers and acquisitions
1948 establishments in Illinois
2003 disestablishments in Illinois