Orthomimetics, the privately held Cambridge, UK-based medical technology company, is to be acquired by Leuven, Belgium-based TiGenix for £23.8m.
Orthomimetics was founded in 2005 as a spin-out from the University of Cambridge and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Its technological advantage lies in its ability to combine three natural biomaterials - collagen, glycosaminoglycans and calcium phosphate - into bioresorbable tissue-regeneration scaffolds.
The company’s flagship product - Chondromimetic - is an off-the-shelf, resorbable implant for the minimally invasive repair of small osteochondral (cartilage and underlying bone) defects.
The product has received European market approval (CE-Mark approval) and is close to entering the European market.
Small osteochondral defects represent an important medical need that is currently not covered by TiGenix’s products.
Chondromimetic forms an excellent fit with TiGenix’s lead product ChondroCelect, since both products target the same customer base.
Commenting on the strategic fit between the companies, Andrew Lynn, chief executive officer of Orthomimetics, who will now assume business-development responsibilities at TiGenix as chief business officer, said: ‘The ability to equip a single sales force with two approved products that have the same point of sale has a clear and immediate commercial benefit.’
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