Wound and surgical sealant company HyperBranch Medical Technology has developed a gel intended as a sealant for brain and spinal procedures. The company is in the midst of clinical testing to see if it works as well as a sealant from Covidien (NYSE:COV).
Durham, North Carolina-based HyperBranch now has some more cash to help in that effort. HyperBranch has raised just over $1 million in equity financing, according to securities filings. The financing follows a $2.1 million fundraising nearly a year ago. Six existing investors in the company participated in the latest offering, which started on Oct. 3.
HyperBranch’s investors include Durham venture capital firm The Aurora Funds. Jeff Clark, a managing director at Aurora, is HyperBranch’s chief operating officer. HyperBranch is led by President and CEO John Conn, a medical device industry veteran of more than 30 years who has held positions at Baxter International (NYSE:BAX) and Onux Medical. Conn did not return calls seeking comment.
HyperBranch last year received a CE Mark in Europe for its Adherus Spinal Sealant, classified as a medical device for use in preventing cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage during spinal surgery. The company also has regulatory clearance in Europe for ocular and cranial sealants as well as a hernia mesh fixation product.
After receiving the CE Mark for Adherus, HyperBranch last year began enrolling a clinical trial for the surgical sealant. In study details HyperBranch submitted to the the National Institutes of Health, the company explains that it is studying Adherus in patients who have a cerebrospinal fluid leak at the end of surgery even after stitching and other standard measures have been taken. Participants in the trial will be randomized to receive either HyperBranch’s sealant or a currently available product from Covidien called DuraSeal. The study aims to determine if Adherus is as safe and effective as DuraSeal.
HyperBranch’s sealant is made of two components that form a gel when combined. A doctor applies the gel after closing the incision.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
“The gel acts as a thin, elastic barrier intended to prevent CSF from leaking until the dura tissue has properly healed on its own,” HyperBranch said in filings. “The gel is then absorbed by the body over several months and excreted or removed from the body through the urine.”
HyperBranch has already commercialized a liquid eye bandage called OcuSeal. That product was licensed to medical device giant BD (NYSE:BDX), which is marketing the product outside the United States. HyperBranch was formed in 2004 based on technology of adhering tissues to prevent leakage that was originally developed at Duke University by company co-founder Mark Grinstaff. Grinstaff was a professor of chemistry, ophthalmology and biomedical engineering at the university.
