RTI Biologics and Athersys announce collaboration

RTI Biologics Inc., a provider of orthopedic and other biologic implants, and Athersys Inc. a regenerative medicine and cell therapy research and development company, announced an agreement under which Athersys will provide RTI access to its Multipotent Adult Progenitor Cell (MAPC) technologies.

Under the agreement, RTI has licensed Athersys’ technology to isolate and preserve cells from organ and tissue donors, according to a joint press release issued by the companies. This will enable RTI to develop and commercialize MAPC technology-based biologic implants exclusively for certain orthopedic applications. With this license, RTI expands its capabilities for accessing the fastest growing segment of the bone graft substitutes market, while Athersys extends the application of its robust stem cell technology platform to an important segment of the orthopedic market.

"We are very excited about our collaboration with Athersys and the potential to apply its MAPC and related technologies in the orthobiologics market," Brian K. Hutchison, RTI's chairman and CEO, stated in the press release. “After significant research into stem cells and the evaluation of multiple technologies, we have determined that the MAPC technology offers the greatest potential to create high quality, innovative implants for our surgeons and their patients. Licensing this technology is an important step in enhancing and further differentiating RTI’s orthobiologics offering, an area of strategic focus for the company.”

William Lehmann Jr., president and COO of Athersys, noted, “We are enthusiastic about our relationship with RTI and this application of our proprietary stem cell technologies to the orthopedic market. Our primary focus is the development and commercialization of expanded, ‘off-the-shelf’ cell products, such as MultiStem, for the treatment of certain cardiovascular, central nervous system-related, inflammatory and immune system disorders, diseases and conditions. This collaboration allows for the utilization of our already developed stem cell technologies in an additional area. Further, it provides potential near term revenues from the orthopedic market.”