AlloSource Enters into Licensing Agreement with Keratec Limited to Add Enhanced DBM Putty Product to Line-up
2007 NOV 19 -- AlloSource, one of the nation's largest non-profit providers of skin, bone and soft tissue allografts for use in surgical procedures, announced that it has entered into a licensing agreement with Keratec Limited of New Zealand. Under the agreement, Keratec and AlloSource will jointly develop a next-generation DBM putty utilizing Keratec's proprietary Keragraft technology. Keragraft is an optimal carrier in combination with DBM and initial studies demonstrate superior bone growth characteristics. Development and market approvals from FDA are expected to take 6 to 9 months and AlloSource plans to have the new product available in Q3 of 2008. "Adding this product to our offering fills out the continuum of bone growth substitutes that AlloSource offers," said Kevin Cmunt, AlloSource Executive Vice President. "We believe the combination of allograft tissue and Keragraft will produce superior bone healing products, giving patients impressive results leading to quicker recovery times and the reduction of additional treatment needs." The Keragraft bone healing products use the same technology as Keratec's Functional Keratin range of medical and personal care technologies. The technology extracts natural keratin, a main constituent in skin and hair, from New Zealand wool in a form that uniquely preserves its natural biological function of promoting cell strength and recovery. Keragraft materials, which are part of the Functional Keratin range, provide surgeons with a new level of versatility in filling bone cavities following procedures such as the removal of bone cancer or a hip replacement and have been shown to speed recovery. With the completion of the license agreement, AlloSource enhances its distinction as the only U.S. tissue bank offering a full range of bone growth substitutes. The company now offers DBM and Cancellous bone particulates, AlloFuse(R) and AlloFuse(R) Plus DBM paste and putty, Osteocel, the osteoconductive, osteoinductive and osteogenic bone void filler with live stem cells, and this next generation DBM paste and putty utilizing the Keragraft technology. AlloSource is the second largest non-profit bone, soft tissue and allograft skin network in the nation. AlloSource is also the largest supplier of fresh cartilage allografts and skin used for life-saving burn applications in the world. Keywords: Tissue Banking, Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, Biomedicine, Bone Cancer, Bone Void Filler, Medical Device, Stem Cell Research, Surgery, Surgical Technology, Tissue Bank, Tissue Engineering, AlloSource. This article was prepared by Clinical Oncology Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2007, Clinical Oncology Week via NewsRx.com.
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