Nephros, a commercial stage medical device company that develops and sells high performance liquid purification ultrafilters and Bellco, an Italy-based company focused on Dialysis and Extracorporeal Blood Purification, have signed an amendment to their existing license agreement.
The amendment extends the agreement by five years through 2021 and expands the territories covered by Bellco to include Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Korea, Mexico, Brazil, China and the Netherlands and grants Bellco a right of first offer in connection with a proposed sale of the Nephros patent licensed to Bellco under the agreement.
In return Nephros will receive €450,000, half payable upon execution and half payable on March 31, 2014. Nephros has also agreed to reduce the fixed royalty payment in return for a corresponding increase in the minimum sales volumes required to retain exclusivity. The royalty period begins on January 1, 2015 and extends through December 31, 2021.
Bellco CEO Carlo Medici said the company is excited to strengthen its partnership with Nephros.
"This agreement is a pivotal milestone in the continued expansion of hemodiafiltration (HDF) therapy based on mid-dilution with the MD220 dialyzer," Medici added.
"Recent studies have confirmed the reduction of patient mortality of on-line HDF compared with standard treatments. We are convinced that this expanded agreement will enhance Bellco’s ability to provide the highest range of hemodiafiltration therapies in the world."
Nephros president and CEO John C. Houghton said Bellco has extensive experience and expertise providing therapies and systems for the treatment of renal failure, in particular on-line HDF.
"We are very pleased about the prospect of the MD220 dialyzer being made available to an expanded group of territories which will enable more patients to benefit from on-line mid-dilution HDF," Houghton added.