L&C Bio has bolstered its technological edge for entering the global regenerative medicine market by securing a U.S. patent for its wound healing technology that harnesses human skin-derived extracellular matrix (ECM).
The company announced on Tuesday that it has successfully registered a U.S. patent (US 12,758,679 B2) for a wound healing composition and manufacturing method that combines human skin ECM with biopolymers.
This patented technology involves micro-particulating human skin ECM and then blending it with biopolymers such as hyaluronic acid to achieve the physical properties essential for wound healing. It’s specifically engineered to enhance viscosity, cohesiveness, and shape retention, addressing the limitations of conventional sheet-type wound dressings and the poor adhesion of powder-type ECM.
This innovation is at the heart of L&C Bio’s gel-type wound dressing, MegaCure. The product combines human-derived acellular dermis with cross-linked hyaluronic acid, allowing for direct application to irregular wound surfaces. MegaCure has already received regulatory approval in South Korea.
With this U.S. patent registration, following similar approvals in South Korea and China in 2023, L&C Bio has expanded its intellectual property protection in key markets.
The company is pursuing a dual-track strategy, developing products that leverage the unique properties of human tissue alongside medical devices that incorporate biopolymers with human tissue.
Human tissue-based products utilize decellularized tissue to harness the inherent ECM structure. In contrast, composite-based medical devices incorporate polymers like hyaluronic acid to achieve desired physical properties such as viscosity and cohesiveness.
This technology is expanding beyond skin applications to include nerve and bone reconstruction. L&C Bio has developed a diverse product line, including skin ECM-based Ritwo and MegaDerm, nerve reconstruction product MegaNerve, and bone reconstruction product MegaFill Putty.
Looking ahead, the company plans to develop biomaterials that utilize ECM characteristics from various human tissues, including fat and tendons/ligaments. Their strategy focuses on refining processing and composite technologies tailored to specific tissue characteristics and linking product development to commercialization.
In the first half of this year, L&C Bio reported standalone revenues of 55.4 billion KRW (approximately 41.5 million USD), marking a 78.4% growth compared to the same period last year. Operating profit surged to 15.3 billion KRW (around 11.5 million USD), a staggering 589.7% increase.
Notably, sales of their human tissue ECM product Ritwo reached about 23.6 billion KRW (approximately 17.7 million USD) in the first half, more than tripling last year’s annual sales.
In China, after obtaining import sales approval for MegaDerm Plus in January of last year, the company commenced local sales this January and applied for approval to begin local production in March.
An L&C Bio spokesperson emphasized that the U.S. patent registration is a significant milestone, validating the technology that combines biopolymers with human tissue-derived ECM to achieve optimal product properties. It’s committed to strengthening MegaCure’s global commercialization foundation and continuously expanding the human tissue ECM platform through the diverse product lineup.
