Regenerative medicine company Orthocell (ASX: OCC) has been granted patents from both China and Hong Kong for their proprietary novel CelGro® collagen rope device. 

The addition of these two new patents means that the device is now patented across five jurisdictions including the US and Australia. The IP protection is integral to Orthocell’s commercialisation plans. 

The device works to enhance the surgical repair of Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries. The ACL is one of the major functional ligaments in the knee that connects the thigh bone to the shin bone. Rupture of the ACL is a relatively common injury amongst active people usually requiring surgery and an extensive, lengthy rehabilitation process. 

Currently, surgical repair is done by reconstructing the ACL using a hamstring graft. A portion of the patient’s own tendon is taken from the hamstring and used to replace the ruptured ACL. This method is time consuming and can lead to further complications including hamstring tears or strains during the rehabilitation period. 

ACL repair and rehabilitation costs USD $17.5 billion per year in the US alone where 200,000 ACL knee reconstructions are performed annually.  In Australia approximately 15,000 surgeries are carried out per year.

CelGro® provides an alternative to harvesting patient tendons from their hamstring. The product is a collagen rope made from braided fibres and is believed to improve clinical outcomes for patients by simplifying repair techniques, reducing surgery time and mitigating comorbidity risks associated with the use of hamstring grafts. The Company believes that the device has many characteristics that make it a serious competitor against other tissue repair methods, such as: cell biocompatibility, tensile strength and the ability to promote high-quality tissue repair. 

The reported preclinical results indicate that the rope is effective in replacing hamstring grafts and could supplement traditional surgical intervention by becoming an easy off-the-shelf solution to this common injury. 

The Company is now in the process of finalising their pre-clinical study of the device with results expected to be reported by 3Q CY2021.