SUNRISE, Fla., Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Cellular heart repair firm Bioheart said Monday it has signed a patent licensing deal with Cleveland Clinic.
Under the deal, Bioheart -- which aims to further develop its stem cell-based method for repairing damaged heart tissue -- has gained from Cleveland, Ohio-based Cleveland Clinic the global exclusive rights to five pending U.S. patent applications and corresponding foreign filings covering the repair of scarred heart tissue damaged from a heart attack.
The licensing pact gives Bioheart access to a minimum of three new products to treat myocardial infarction, or heart attack, and heart failure, as well as a first right of refusal to related product improvements.
The pending patents cover methods of repairing damaged heart tissue by transplanting muscle stem cells that express therapeutic proteins capable of "recruiting" other stem cells within a patient's own body to the cell transplanted area, the biotechnology firm said.
The recruited stem cells then further help repair the damaged cardiac tissue and aid in forming new blood vessels.
"Adding the Clinic's proprietary methods to Bioheart's existing muscle stem cell technologies fits well with our strategy to continuously improve our products," said Bioheart Chairman and CEO Howard Leonhardt.
