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AMSTERDAM (AP) - European regulators have approved scientific instrument maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.'s $13.6 billion acquisition of Life Technologies Corp., on the condition that they divest parts of their businesses.
The European Commission said in a statement Thursday that the companies _ both of which are based in the U.S. _ have agreed to dispose parts of their businesses producing and supplying cell cultures, "gene silencing" products and polymer-based magnetic beads.
The commission said it had cooperated with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission as well as parallel bodies in Japan, Australia, China and New Zealand during its investigation of the deal, which began in October.
Thermo Fisher is based in Waltham, Mass., while Life Technologies is headquartered in Carlsbad, Calif.
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