Environmental Diagnostics To Buy Research Company

Environmental Diagnostics, Inc. of Irvine has signed a letter of intent to acquire Receptor Molecules Inc., a Tallahassee-based research company, in an exchange of stock valued at about $10.8 million.

Under the agreement, subject to stockholder approval, Environmental Diagnostics will acquire all the outstanding shares of the other company for 6.2 million of its unregistered common shares, according to Arden A. Kelton, president of Environmental Diagnostics.

Company officials said 2.2 million of the shares will be placed in an escrow account and distributed subject to certain conditions.

Kelton said his two-year-old chemical testing firm will shift its emphasis from research to sales as it develops more products such as a kit to determine use of marijuana.

The two companies had been involved in a joint venture in the development of the marijuana use detection test, but Kelton said Receptor Molecule’s technology--namely a sensitive receptor molecule used in chemical detection--and its offer to sell were too good to pass up.