Histogenics Corp. launched a Phase III clinical trial of its NeoCart knee cartilage repair implant, designed to help regenerate tissue.

The Waltham, Mass.-based company said the 245-patient study will compare use of the implant with standard microfracture surgery to repair damaged knee cartilage. Microfrature surgery involves drilling small holes in bone to fill the defect with blood clots. The NeoCart device uses neocartilagenous tissue developed from patients’ chondrocyte cells, which are integrated into a three-dimensional collagen matrix, according to a press release.

An estimated 500,000 severe cartilage lesions are treated each year in the U.S., according to the release.

Waltham, Mass.-based Histogenics isn’t the only local company looking to harness chondrocytes to repair knee cartilage. Prochon Biotech Ltd., based in Woburn, Mass., is running a Phase II clinical trial of its BioCart system, which uses proprietary fibroblast growth factor technology to help regenerate damaged cartilage in the knee. In March, the company said it planned to release data from the study by June.