Boston Scientific puts $90m into Millepede

Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) said today that it took out a $90 million position in Millepede that includes an option to buy the heart valve repair firm.

Santa Rosa, Calif.-based Millipede makes the Iris transcatheter annuloplasty ring for treating mitral valve regurgitation. Marlborough, Mass.-based Boston Scientific can trigger the option to acquire the rest of Millipede any time before a first-in-human study of the device; completion of the study gives Millipede the right to trigger the full acquisition for $325 million, plus a $125 million commercial milestone. Both options are good until the end of next year.

“Intervening with the least invasive approach at earlier stages of severe mitral regurgitation has the greatest opportunity to alter the natural history of the disease and the progression to heart failure,” Boston’s chief medical officer, Dr. Ian Meredith, said in prepared remarks. “We believe that restoring mitral annular dimensions via a transcatheter mitral annuloplasty ring will be a crucial component to effective, minimally invasive improvement of mitral valve function for appropriately-indicated patients.”

“We saw an opportunity to bring the gold-standard surgical approach to repairing the mitral valve to an underserved population of severe MR patients with transcatheter techniques, and are excited Boston Scientific also sees the unique abilities of the IRIS transcatheter ring,” added Millipede chairman and Santé Ventures managing director Dr. Joe Cunningham.