From BioHealing – income is not puny
Venture businessmen will make a big profit on the sale of Advanced BioHealing to ShireVenture-News
Advanced BioHealing Inc. sells Dermagraft, a drug used in the treatment of certain types of diabetic foot ulcers.
Founded in 2004, the company raised $40 million in an attempt to create a profitable business, and its revenue grew from $8.6 million in 2007 (the year of Dermagraft's release) to $146.7 million in 2010.
In addition to Canaan Partners and Safeguard Sciences, the company's shareholders are CDIB Bioscience Ventures, Channel Medical Partners, Horizon Technology Finance, Red Abbey Venture Partners and Wheatley Partners. The head of the company, Peter Boni, claims that the 13-fold return on investments is the second most successful result in the last 58 years.
This deal is a rare success for investors in the field of regenerative medicine, which has its drawbacks due to the difficulties associated with the development of cell therapy. Advanced BioHealing succeeded after buying Dermagraft, which conquered the US market after going through a rigorous pre-sale approval process. Dermagraft was bought out from Smith & Nephew PLC in 2006 and released in 2007. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed.
Dermagraft is a culture of fibroblasts grown on a biological medium and metabolically active tissue. The drug is used in the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers, which often lead to amputation of the limb with improper treatment. Advanced BioHealing also planned to expand the target audience of the drug, recommending it for the treatment of venous ulcers on the legs.
The idea of creating the company belonged to the general partner of Canaan, Steven Bloch, who proposed to create a regenerative medicine company operating on the principle of buying the developments of other companies. The field of activity was chosen for the treatment of wounds as one of the areas most in need of new products.
At an early stage, it was difficult to maintain the company's work due to the fact that regenerative medicine was not a success. It was problematic to cooperate with large pharmaceutical companies or manufacturers of medical equipment, since regenerative medicine does not fully meet the needs of these areas. According to Bloch, Shire is a company with extensive experience in the field of biomedicine, and a good mentor for Advanced BioHealing.
However, large companies need to consider new types of products to support further growth, Bloch says. Launched by Dendreon Corp. The Provenge drug used in the treatment of prostate cancer has proven the need for therapeutic cancer vaccines. The success of Dermagraft also testifies to the value of regenerative medicine products.
"It is necessary to develop new models and ways to make a profit, to look to the future with optimism, and not to look back," Bloch is sure. – There have not been many successes in the field of regenerative medicine. Our company is the leader here."
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru29.07.2011