Tissue Regenix moves to market by way of Oxeco

A TISSUE development firm spun out of the University of Leeds today vowed to develop new products and build a bigger company "block by block" after agreeing a reverse takeover of a technology company.

York-based Tissue Regenix, a medical technology company focused on developing and selling acellular tissue replacement products to address a global shortfall in donor tissue availability, announced a proposed move to the stock market by way of the reverse takeover of AIM-listed Oxeco.

Tissue Regenix uses its proprietary technology, dCELL, to remove cells and other components from human and animal tissue and replace worn out or diseased body parts, without the need for anti-rejection drugs.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It will use the proceeds of the listing to develop dCELL, which it said has applications in vascular, cardiac and orthopaedic medicine. Antony Odell, managing director, told the : "What we are offering are regenerative products that are part of the human body. They don't fail as often as synthetics.

"We have got enough cash now to finance our next development which is dCELL Meniscus. We want to build the company block by block."

The group's main product is the dCELL Vascular Patch, which is permanently implanted into the human body for vascular repair. The company intends to start marketing the dCELL Vascular Patch in Europe during the second half of 2010.

It then plans to focus on dCELL Meniscus, for the repair of damaged knee meniscus.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Tissue Regenix, which was advised on the deal by DLA Piper in Leeds, was incorporated in May 2006 to commercialise the research of the University of Leeds.

Professor John Fisher, a key scientist behind the technology, said: "Currently the focus of our research is on biological scaffolds for tissue repair in the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal system. This forms part of our wider research portfolio which is aimed at addressing the expectations of the ageing population for '50 active years after the age of 50'."