Accentus Medical signs licence agreement for Agluna anti-infective technology with Zimmer

Accentus Medical, a leading UK medical technology company that supplies advanced coatings and surface treatments to the medical device industry, announced today that it has signed a Licence and Services Agreement with Zimmer Holdings, Inc., a global market leader in musculoskeletal care. This agreement will enable the use of Accentus Medical's Agluna^® anti-infective technology on a potentially broad range of Zimmer products.

“Applying the Agluna® technology to our implants could lead to reductions in the occurrence of post-operative infections in joint replacement procedures, " said Cheryl R. Blanchard, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at Zimmer. "We look forward to exploring these opportunities provided by Accentus Medical.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Zimmer will acquire exclusive global rights to utilize Agluna^® for joint reconstruction and trauma products. In addition, the company will have an 18-month option to acquire additional exclusive rights for spinal devices, dental implants and sports medicine products. As part of the agreement, there will be an initial period of further development of Agluna^®. Accentus and Zimmer will collaborate to secure regulatory approval for products treated with the Agluna^® technology in both the E.U. and U.S. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

Agluna^® is a novel, patented surface modification technology applied to medical devices manufactured from titanium and its various alloys. The goal of the technology is to reduce infection rates following surgical procedures. Medical device materials have been shown to be susceptible to rapid colonisation by bacteria, which then produce a plaque or biofilm as protection against the body's defences. Implants treated with Agluna^® technology have been shown to remain clear of such biofilm formation. In vitro testing has demonstrated that Agluna^® surface technology has bactericidal effects against bacteria known to cause post-operative, device-related infection, including drug-resistant strains.

Philip Agg, Chief Executive of Accentus Medical, said: "This agreement represents a significant step forward for Accentus Medical, and we are very pleased to be working with a company as prestigious as Zimmer. Having invested significant resources in developing the technology and in generating a large amount of evidence supporting its safety and efficacy, Accentus Medical is now in a position to fully commercialise and exploit the Agluna^® technology."

Martin Pickford, Senior Vice-President of Business Development for Accentus Medical, said: "One of the most intransigent problems with orthopaedic implants is infection. It can be very difficult, costly and time consuming to treat these cases. The most effective approach is to ensure that infections do not occur in the first place. All of our data to-date demonstrates that treating orthopaedic implants with the Agluna^® process can contribute towards achieving this goal. If successful in the long term, Agluna^® will help significantly reduce the estimated $5 billion in annual costs associated with infections resulting from primary joint replacement."

"Applying the Agluna^® technology to our implants could lead to reductions in the occurrence of post-operative infections in joint replacement procedures, " said Cheryl R. Blanchard, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at Zimmer. "We look forward to exploring these opportunities provided by Accentus Medical."