Germany's Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA entered a strategic partnership with privately held Humacyte, Inc. under which it will buy 19% of the Morrisville, N.C.-based research and development company for $150 million.
Under the agreement, Fresenius will also obtain exclusive global rights to commercialize Humacyte's Humacyl — investigational bioengineered blood vessels meant for hemodialysis, or the process of filtering the blood of patients whose kidneys are not working normally.
Fresenius, one of the world's largest provider of products and services for individuals with kidney diseases, said Humacyl may prove more effective than synthetic grafts and fistula, which are currently used in the dialysis process.
The transaction is expected to close in July, subject to regulatory and other customary closing conditions.
