Allergan buys Serica Technologies for undisclosed amount

February 4, 2010 by MassDevice staff

Serica Technologies Inc. becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Irvine, Calif-based medical products giant Allergan.

Allergan Inc. (NYSE:AGN) acquired Serica Technologies Inc. for an undisclosed amount.

Medford, Mass.-based Serica, which is developing silk-based biomaterials for tissue repair, will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Irvine, Calif.-based Allergan, which makes products ranging from Botox to Lap-Band gastric banding systems.

Serica shareholders will receive cash and equity in a new venture called Alacer Biomedical Inc., which holds exclusive rights to Serica's intellectual property related to orthopedic and veterinary applications, according to a press release. Serica will continue to operate out of its Medford facility.

Serica was founded in 1998 as Tissue Regeneration Inc. by Greg Altman, a former All-American football player at Tufts University. The company sought to commercialize Altman's doctoral work in biomedical engineering, which was focused on developing a tissue-engineered ligament from adult stem cells. Circumstances forced the firm to switch gears in favor of the potential of silk-based biomaterials.

In late 2008 the company won 510(k) clearance from the Food & Drug Administration for its SeriScaffold, a silk-based surgical mesh designed to repair and remodel damaged connective tissue, avoiding the erosion and scar formation that can result from surgery.

The company raised $24 million in venture financing over its 11 years in operation from Morningside Technology Ventures, Prism VentureWorks, Ivy Capital Partners and others, according to the release.

In December last year, Altman told MassDevice that Serica focused on uncovering potential applications for the technology with an eye toward making it a platform for multiple products.

"One of the things we have done well is we've learned to manipulate this silk biomaterial such that it may support alternate product configurations. While our key focus is on ligament repair, we've been able to increase the breadth of potential unmet clinical needs that can be met with our biomaterial platform," Altman said. "Our strategy has been one in which we want to leverage the diversity of our product platform to financially support the company and its various product opportunities."