This winter could be christened the season of out-of-town buyouts as Pittsburgh adds another publicly traded company to it's roster, this time in the biotech arena with North-Carolina-based Paradigm Genetics' purchase of TissueInformatics Inc.

Like its local tech-annexing predecessors, Paradigm Genetics has pledged to retain the fledgling biotech firm's South Side offices as well as all of its 24 employees. TissueInformatics CEO Dr. Peter Johnson has been named the company's executive vice president and chief medical officer.

"It's a real tribute to the shareholders in Pittsburgh -- that they were able to build this company to the point where a public biotech company would want to acquire. We're really proud of that."

The transaction, expected to be finalized in early March, could be worth $8.8 million in stock based on Paradigm's closing price yesterday of $1.45. The deal calls for 3.4 million Paradigm shares to be issued immediately and another 2.7 million shares contingent upon the combined company's performance.

Like many mergers -- this was a case of two companies looking to broaden their reach, a feat better accomplished together than apart.

Last year, TissueInformatics sold French cosmetics giant L'Oreal its tissue analysis software for a reported $500,000 -- a revenue generator for a company that had remained primarily in the research and development realm since it's founding in 1997. TissueInformatics has also penetrated the pharmaceutical industry working alongside drug researcher Diathegen. Paradigm Genetics, also founded in 1997 and publicly traded since May 2000, has been in the agribusiness industry that TissueInformatics has been eyeing. Together the two companies plan to merge their technologies and broaden their customer base, specifically Big Pharma.

The duo's relationship began last March when the two firms launched a collaboration on liver disease research. That TissueInformatics was facing refinancing at the end of this year helped facilitate the deal. "Refinancing scenarios are so punitive to shareholders," said Johnson. "It made us consider what our other options were." TissueInformatics was considering other possibilities, but Paradigm's liquidity and Johnson's relationship with CEO Heinrich Gugger made this the best fit.

"He and I share core values -- our attitudes on the care of employees and our approach to shareholders and boards," said Johnson.

Relinquishing the reins he's held as chief of a much-touted bio-tech outfit is a chance to upgrade his experience, according to Johnson. In his new role he said he will help facilitate the blending of the two companies as well as and lend his scientific expertise. " I'm really excited about it. I've never had the opportunity to work in a publicly traded company before."

Paradigm's stock rose following yesterday's conference call, closing up 17 cents, or 13 percent at 1.45.