Indications & Partnership Opportunities

Nerites offers adhesives that can be used across a broad variety of medical indications, as standalone products or as adjuncts to other medical devices.  We engage corporate partners to develop products that meet the medical needs of many different surgical procedures.

The flexibility of our chemistry enables us to tailor performance characteristics of the material specifically for each application.  We can glue two tissue surfaces together, affix a medical device to a tissue surface, seal anastomotic and suture-line leaks, and provide other medical solutions.  Each product that we develop with our partners is chemically and functionally distinct from all other products we have developed.

Chemistry

Our polymer structures utilize a well-characterized, biocompatible backbone such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), connected to adhesive endgroups that exploit a variety of chemical linkages to tissue or implant surfaces.  The polymers are assembled via crosslinking, yielding strong cohesive and adhesive strength.  By changing the underlying materials and the crosslinking structure, Nerites can “tune” the functional characteristics of the adhesive to each new application. The diagram below illustrates a crosslinked Nerites hydrogel attaching a medical device to a tissue surface using a variety of chemical linkages.

Biocompatibility & Degradation

Nerites uses only synthetic molecules, so that there is no risk of disease transmission or immunogenic response to animal or human components.  In-vivo and in-vitro testing, in accordance with ISO 10993 standards, indicate that the material is a non-irritant.  Byproducts are non-toxic and cleared through the renal system.  The degradation rate can be tailored to each application, depending on whether the adhesive needs to last days, weeks, or months.

Delivery System

Products are typically delivered as a hydrogel in situ or pre-coated onto an adjunctive medical device.  The delivery system can also be tailored to the application for ease of surgical use and optimal distribution of the adhesive in gel, liquid, or spray form.

Technical Performance

Nerites polymers are “tuned” to meet our partners’ requirements.  We can vary:

All of these can be changed without significantly impacting our superior burst, peel, and shear strength.