Medical technology company Smith+Nephew has agreed to acquire Agili-C implant developer CartiHeal, in a deal worth up to $330m.

Under the agreement, Smith+Nephew will initially make a cash payment of $180m to CartiHeal at the closing of the transaction.

The medical technology company will make an additional payment of up to $150m based on financial performance.

CartiHeal’s Agili-C is a cell-free, off-the-shelf implant for use in cartilage and osteochondral defects in traumatic and osteoarthritic joints.

It is designed to stimulate natural articular cartilage and subchondral bone regeneration.

The implant is capable of treating a wide patient population, including those with knee lesions with mild to moderate osteoarthritis.

Agili-C is also indicated to treat approximately 700,000 patients who receive cartilage repair in the US every year.  

The porous, biocompatible, and resorbable scaffold is developed to promote natural regeneration of the articular cartilage and restoration of its primary subchondral bone.

The US Food and Drug Administration granted breakthrough device designation status for the Agili-C implant in 2020 and premarket approval in March 2022.

CartiHeal CEO and founder Nir Altschuler said: “As a leader in sports medicine and with a deep knowledge of biologics, Smith+Nephew is the ideal new home for Agili-C.”

Smith+Nephew CEO Deepak Nath said the acquisition of the disruptive technology will support the company’s strategy to invest in its Sports Medicine business.

“Agili-C’s superior clinical performance makes it highly complementary to our existing knee repair portfolio and with our proven commercial expertise in high-growth biologics, we are confident that we will drive further success with this compelling treatment option."