Orthocell’s ‘Cell Factory’ Granted Patent in U.S.

PERTH, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Regenerative medicine company Orthocell Limited is pleased to announce issuance of a US patent relating to its cell factory technology which produces native cartilage and bone active proteins. This technology is one of the exciting pipeline products for the Company and supports the existing tendon and cartilage regeneration products that are currently marketed.

“As the population ages and cartilage conditions become more prevalent, doctors and patients are seeking treatments to alleviate symptoms that affect mobility and quality of life.”

The intellectual property is based on research carried out by Orthocell director Professor Lars Lidgren, professor of orthopaedics at Lund University in Sweden. The department in Lund is a member of the International Society of Orthopaedic Centers group of world leading orthopaedic centres.

This innovative intellectual property is focused on the generation of ‘tissue specific’ growth factors for the regeneration of cartilage and bone and follows on from the Cell Factory work for the cartilage injuries that was announced by Orthocell in May 2015. Growth factors are an important stimulator of soft tissue and bone regeneration and have traditionally been extremely difficult to isolate from the “soup” of various growth factors and proteins that exist within the body.

Orthocell Managing Director Paul Anderson said: ”This is another important step in bringing value to Orthocell’s tissue regeneration portfolio for enhancing repair of bone, tendon and cartilage injuries.

More than 500,000 cartilage surgeries are undertaken in the US each year and the use of growth factors to prevent or augment a portion of these surgeries represents an attractive market opportunity for Orthocell.

“These cultivated growth factors have the potential to be a clinically important and cost effective procedure for the regeneration of articular cartilage of the knee and also other joints,” Mr Anderson said. “As the population ages and cartilage conditions become more prevalent, doctors and patients are seeking treatments to alleviate symptoms that affect mobility and quality of life.”

The new patent further strengthens Orthocell’s pipeline opportunities which are strongly complimentary to its current regenerative medicine approaches. The patent will expire in 2027.

About Orthocell Limited

Orthocell is a commercial-stage, regenerative medicine company focused on regenerating mobility for patients and our ageing population by developing products for a variety of tendon, cartilage and soft tissue injuries. Orthocell’s portfolio of products include TGA-approved stem cell therapies Autologous Tenocyte Implantation (Ortho-ATI™) and Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (Ortho-ACI™), which aim to regenerate damaged tendon and cartilage tissue. The Company’s other major product is Celgro™, a collagen medical device which facilitates tissue repair and healing in a variety of orthopaedic, reconstructive and surgical applications and is being readied for first regulatory approvals.