Company Overview

Orthocell Pty Ltd (Orthocell) is a biotherapeutic technology development company seeking to address unmet clinical needs within the global orthopaedics sector. Its core focus is biological therapies for tendon and ligament tissue repair and regeneration. Orthocell’s technology will deliver the first truly effective regenerative solution for tendonopathy related injuries.

The Problem

Tendon and cartilage disease is a huge burden on healthcare systems globally and is a major cause of morbidity in the general population. Disorders of the shoulder tendons are the most common cause of shoulder pain, which accounts for 1.2% of all visits to general practitioners. The prevalence of shoulder tendon degeneration increases with age to reach 30-50% by the seventh decade of life and a staggering 70-80% by the ninth. While most cases are treated conservatively, there are an estimated 250,000 shoulder tendon surgeries performed in the US over 14,000 shoulder tendon repair surgeries performed annually in Australia, with patients being committed to a prolonged convalescence. There are no drug therapies to specifically treat shoulder or other tendon injuries and many surgical repairs fail within 12 months. There are currently limited treatment options for shoulder and other tendon disorders.

Our Solution

Orthocell’s technology provides regenerative, functional and definitive outcomes for patients. The Orthocell team has developed key novel steps in the Tenocyte Cultivation and Expansion process. These steps include formulation of the method for human autologous tenocyte culture. Orthocell’s Cellgro scaffold is tailored in its design to provide the biomechanical support and stabilization to the damaged tendon assisting in the tendon regeneration process. The scaffold acts as an effective delivery system and host for the tenocyte cells providing biocompatibility, absorbability and having only a very weak immunogenicity or inflammatory response.