On Jul. 2, 2003, Invitrogen bought Molecular Probes for $325 million in cash. The company became part of Life Technologies, through the merger of Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems, and is now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, following Fisher’s acquisition of Life Technologies in 2014.

Molecular Probes is the world’s leader in novel fluorescent reagents for molecular and cell biology research. The company’s intellectual property portfolio includes over 150 patents and patent applications. The company has fully equipped R&D and manufacturing facilities and a highly-skilled employee base in Eugene, Oregon, as well as facilities in The Netherlands. Molecular Probes had revenues of $56 million in 2002 and is expecting revenues of $66 million in 2003. The company has a strong history of double-digit revenue growth and operating margins above 40%.

Molecular Probes was founded in 1975 by Richard (Dick) and Rosaria Haugland in their kitchen in Minnesota. The biotechnology company located in Eugene, Oregon specialized in fluorescence.