Genzyme Acquires Verigen

In a transaction that will expand the company's orthopedic offerings, Genzyme Corp. (Cambridge, MA, USA) has acquired Verigen AG (Leverkusen, Germany) for U.S.$10 million in initial payments, with potential additional payments of up to $40 million over the next six years.

Verigen has developed a cell therapy for cartilage repair currently marketed in Europe and Australia that is called matrix-induced autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI). MACI will expand Genzyme's orthopedic line and provide a strong second-generation product to Carticel, its first-generation therapy of autologous cultured chondrocytes. The transaction will also provide Genzyme with cell-culture facilities in Europe and Australia to support sales in those territories.

Verigen's MACI approach offers a more convenient method of delivery than the method used with Carticel. Both procedures begin with harvesting healthy cartilage from a patient's knee and sending it to a cell-processing facility where technicians grow millions of new cells, which are then implanted into the defect. In Verigen's MACI procedure, however, technicians in the laboratory seed the patient's cells onto a collagen membrane, which is fitted by a surgeon into the cartilage defect and can be secured without suturing. This eliminates the need for surgeons to suture a piece of the periosteum over the implanted cells, as is done during the Carticel procedure. As a result, MACI can be performed during a faster, less-invasive procedure than Carticel requires.

"This strategic acquisition will help advance our global orthopedic franchise by providing a strong second-generation cartilage repair product with a solid foundation in Europe and Australia,” said Ann Merrifield, president of Genzyme Biosurgery.





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