July 11, 2007 - SurModics Inc. and Paragon Intellectual Properties LLC announced an agreement to develop a stent system for the treatment of coronary artery disease, which combines SurModics' FINALE Prohealing coating technology and Paragon’s low-profile coronary stent system, designed to address late stent thrombosis.
SurModics’ FINALE prohealing coating technology incorporates extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins designed to accelerate tissue healing of implantable medical devices through the body's own healing mechanisms.
In the deal, SurModics will make a $3.5 million equity investment in Paragon and its newly formed subsidiary, Apollo Therapeutics, LLC. SurModics has agreed to invest an additional $2.5 million upon successful completion of specified development milestones.
"We firmly believe that SurModics' FINALE prohealing coating technology will speed recovery of the normal vessel architecture and inner cell lining, with the potential to not only eliminate late thrombosis but also reduce restenosis,” said Mark C. Bates, M.D., CEO of Paragon and Apollo and a leading interventional cardiologist and founder of the CAMC Vascular Center of Excellence in Charleston, West Virginia. “By combining this innovative technology with Paragon's low-profile stent system, we move closer to the panacea of a highly deliverable coronary stent with a biologic coating that has the efficacy of a drug eluting stent without the long-term concern of late stent thrombosis.”
For more information: www.paragon-ip.com and www.surmodics.com