Healthcare Industry News: vascular closure
News Release - January 30, 2008
Aporo Biomedical Announces Global Licensing Agreement for Proprietary Polymers Used to Treat Structural Heart Disease
Deal With mNEMOSCIENCE GmbH Uniquely Positions Aporo to Deliver Innovative Biodegradable Medical DevicesSAN FRANCISCO--(HSMN NewsFeed)--Aporo Biomedical, a San Francisco/Bay Area-based medical device company, today reported an exclusive global licensing agreement with mNEMOSCIENCE GmbH for its proprietary biodegradable shape memory polymers (BIO-SMP™). Aporo’s goal is to provide significant clinical value by delivering novel transcatheter devices that close defects and then biodegrade over time, leaving behind no permanent implant. Initially, Aporo will use these materials to treat Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO), a type of structural heart disease that involves closing an open tunnel between the upper left and right chambers of the heart. In the future, the company will use the polymers in devices to treat Atrial Septal Defect (ASD), another structural heart disease, and for vascular closure after catheter-based interventional procedures.
While a PFO typically closes within the first few days after birth, approximately 25% of the population has a passageway or hole that remains open. In fact, PFO’s may cause an estimated 200,000 strokes per year. PFO’s are also believed to be a factor in migraine headaches, which affect 12% of the population. Studies indicate that PFO closure may bring migraine relief. Currently, several transcatheter closure devices are in clinical trials to evaluate PFO closure and the impact on stroke and migraine.
Although minimally invasive catheter-based procedures are relatively short and can provide significant benefits to the patient, there is a growing desire among clinicians to avoid the potential complications and disadvantages from permanently implanting a large device in an otherwise healthy heart. Aporo Biomedical will address this concern by delivering a biodegradable device that closes the PFO without leaving a permanent implant.
“The next significant advance in medical technology will be biodegradable devices that disappear once they’ve done their job,” commented Carolyn Patrick, President and CEO of Aporo Biomedical. “As patients are treated younger and live longer, it’s even more important for physicians to have options that consider not only the patients’ immediate outcomes and quality of life, but their future medical needs as well. Aporo Biomedical is well-positioned to advance the field of PFO closure with a fully biodegradable device. We look forward to working with mNEMOSCIENCE® and utilizing the novel BIO-SMP™ technology to bring these transformative devices to market.”
“We are delighted to partner with such a skilled and innovative medical device manufacturer for our BIO-SMP™ technology,” said Christian Palme, CEO, mNEMOSCIENCE. “Securing high-quality, progressive partners like Aporo Biomedical has been a key focus of our strategic development plan and represents an important milestone in advancing our BIO-SMP™ commercialization program.”
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
About Aporo Biomedical
Aporo Biomedical is a San Francisco/Bay Area-based medical device company dedicated to delivering transformative closure technologies for cardiovascular and vascular therapy. The company was founded by Paperboy Ventures to leverage unique materials for devices that minimally invasively facilitate healing, and then later biodegrade to leave no trace behind. The company’s initial focus is structural heart disease, including transcatheter treatment of patent foramen ovale (PFO) and atrial septal defect (ASD).
About mNEMOSCIENCE GmbH
mNEMOSCIENCE GmbH, an intellectual property company and technology incubator, is a pioneer in the design, manufacture and commercialization of innovative biocompatible shape memory polymers (BIO-SMP™) which may be applied to various industries. Based in Aachen, Germany, the privately-held company was founded in 1998 as a spin-off from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). With a robust international patent portfolio that provides broad exclusivity to the manufacture and use of these polymers, a history of innovation in the field, a strategic, market-conscious mentality, as well as an exclusive partnership with MIT, mNEMOSCIENCE is poised to remain at the vanguard of this new frontier. BIO-SMP is a trademark of mNEMOSCIENCE GmbH.
Source: Aporo Biomedical
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