PARIS, March 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sanofi
(EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY) and Pluromed Inc. announced today
that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which
Sanofi is to acquire Pluromed Inc., a medical device company based
in Woburn, Massachusetts. The acquisition is subject to
customary closing conditions.
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Pluromed has developed a proprietary polymer technology, called
Rapid Transition Polymers (RTP™), pioneering the use of injectable
plugs to improve the safety, efficacy and economics of medical
interventions. Sanofi will commercialize Pluromed's LeGoo®, a
highly innovative FDA approved and CE marked gel for temporary
endovascular occlusion of blood vessels during surgical
procedures.
"The acquisition of Pluromed underscores Sanofi's commitment
to strengthen its Biosurgery portfolio," said Alison Lawton, Senior Vice President and General
Manager, Sanofi Biosurgery. "LeGoo® is a
breakthrough technology with the potential to change the paradigm
of vascular and cardiovascular surgical procedures, by providing
fast, temporary control of blood flow while avoiding vessel trauma
associated with standard of care."
"The synergies between our companies were clear from the
beginning," said Jean-Marie Vogel,
Chief Executive Officer of Pluromed, Inc. "We are confident that
Sanofi has the expertise and resources necessary to bring
LeGoo® to market and drive adoption."
"LeGoo represents a major advancement in surgical technology
because of its ability to control bleeding without clamps or snares
that can injure delicate blood vessels," said Dr. William E. Cohn, Director, Minimally invasive
Surgical Technology at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston and a member of Pluromed's Board of
Directors. "This breakthrough gives surgeons a way to temporarily
stop blood flow into the surgical field which is imperative for
clear visualization and accurate placement of sutures. I believe
this technology will be widely adopted in cardiovascular surgery
and perhaps in other fields in the future."
This acquisition reflects Sanofi's commitment to bring
innovative solutions designed to ease surgical procedures and
improve patient outcomes.
About LeGoo
LeGoo® is a thermo-sensitive biocompatible and non-toxic
liquid gel that forms a plug when injected into a blood vessel to
temporarily stop blood flow. The plug dissolves rapidly via cooling
or spontaneously after several minutes. Once dissolved, the plug
cannot reform because the concentration is too low. In a
prospective, randomized study, LeGoo® has been shown to provide
better operating conditions than conventional occlusion techniques,
by limiting blood flow into a surgical field without causing damage
to the vessels. The study also showed a reduction in the time
required to perform an anastomosis for beating heart surgery when
using LeGoo®. Time is critical to patient outcomes in these types
of surgical interventions.
About Sanofi Biosurgery
Sanofi Biosurgery is a global strategic business unit of
Sanofi. It develops and markets innovative, biologically based
products for osteoarthritis relief, adhesion prevention, cartilage
repair, and severe burn treatment. Sanofi Biosurgery's products
include: Synvisc®, Synvisc-One™ (hylan G-F 20), Carticel®
(autologous cultured chondrocytes), MACI® (Matrix-induced
Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation), Seprafilm® and Epicel®
(cultured epidermal autografts). Sanofi Biosurgery is committed to
transforming disease management through innovative medical
interventions.
About Sanofi
Sanofi, a global and diversified healthcare leader,
discovers, develops and distributes therapeutic solutions focused
on patients' needs. Sanofi has core strengths in the field of
healthcare with seven growth platforms: diabetes solutions, human
vaccines, innovative drugs, consumer healthcare, emerging markets,
animal health and the new Genzyme. Sanofi is listed in Paris (EURONEXT: SAN) and in New York (NYSE: SNY).
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking
statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995, as amended. Forward-looking statements are statements
that are not historical facts. These statements include projections
and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements
regarding plans, objectives, intentions and expectations with
respect to future financial results, events, operations, services,
product development and potential, and statements regarding future
performance. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by
the words "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends",
"estimates", "plans" and similar expressions. Although Sanofi's
management believes that the expectations reflected in such
forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors are cautioned
that forward-looking information and statements are subject to
various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to
predict and generally beyond the control of Sanofi, that could
cause actual results and developments to differ materially from
those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking
information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include
among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and
development, future clinical data and analysis, including post
marketing, decisions by regulatory authorities, such as the FDA or
the EMA, regarding whether and when to approve any drug, device or
biological application that may be filed for any such product
candidates as well as their decisions regarding labelling and other
matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential
of such product candidates, the absence of guarantee that the
product candidates if approved will be commercially successful, the
future approval and commercial success of therapeutic alternatives,
the Group's ability to benefit from external growth opportunities,
trends in exchange rates and prevailing interest rates, the impact
of cost containment policies and subsequent changes thereto, the
average number of shares outstanding as well as those discussed or
identified in the public filings with the SEC and the AMF made by
Sanofi, including those listed under "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary
Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in Sanofi's annual
report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2011. Other than as required by
applicable law, Sanofi does not undertake any obligation to update
or revise any forward-looking information or statements.
Contact:
Sarah Connors
617 252-7639
Sarah.Connors@Genzyme.com
SOURCE Sanofi
