The placing, to raise £2 million, is to be used to fund the acquisition and provide additional working capital. For the six months ending 31 January, Yorkshire-headquartered Syntopix posted operating losses of £559,000.

AIM-listed Syntopix is to pay a total consideration of £900,000 for Leeds Skin, which runs an independent testing facility specialising in human skin microbiology and human volunteer and clinical dermatology research.

The consideration is to be satisfied by a cash payment of £258,750 on completion and £641,250 in ordinary shares.

Stephen Jones, CEO of Syntopix, says that the acquisition is a pivotal transaction for Syntopix, as the cell biology experience of Leeds Skin will complement Sytopix’s microbiological expertise.

Jones adds: ‘A key attraction was Leeds Skin’s LabSkin technology, a unique human equivalent skin which we can use to model various properties associated with human skin.’

Yorkshire-based Leeds Skin has a client base including Boots, L’Oreal and GlaxoSmithKline company Stiefel.