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BURBANK, CA-June 28,
2010-Healthcare of Today, Inc. announces that it has acquired Organ
Transport Systems, Inc. ("OTS"), a leading edge developer of the
LifeCradle® portable preservation and transport technology for
human organs. In a unanimous vote, OTS shareholders approved the
acquisition, which took effect June 26, 2010
OTS has been identified for
later inclusion in Healthcare of Today's biotechnology holding
portfolio, Discovia Life Sciences (
www.discovia.com
). Organ
Transport Systems, Inc. (www.organtransportsystems.com
) aims to fill the gap between the need, donation, and
utilization rate of organs, using its breakthrough preservation
technology. The US waiting list for organs has grown to over
100,000 individuals, and yet utilization rates are strikingly low,
for example only 23% of donated hearts and 9% of donated lungs are
transplanted.
In published preclinical
studies, the OTS LifeCradle® device and perfusion solutions have
significantly increased the time for which donor organs can be
utilized and enhanced the health and viability of organs.
Additional pre-clinical studies have been expanded to evaluate
deceased donor hearts at the University of Texas Southwestern
Medical Center in Dallas and new studies are just being initiated
at Duke University Medical Center to extend the LifeCradle® use in
the pediatric heart transplant arena.
CEO of OTS Michael B. Holder
says, "Supply and demand take on a crucial meaning when you are
talking about life-threatening situations like organ
transplantation. Right now organ demand significantly outweighs
organ donor supply and usage, and we have the solution that can
change that. We join HOTI at an important time, as we are making
rapid progress toward implementing our technologies globally, with
patents worldwide and ongoing preparations for widespread European
and American clinical studies."
One donor can provide up to
eight solid organs according to the United Network for Organ
Sharing (UNOS). OTS's LifeCradle® technology is currently designed
for the heart, but can be adapted to work with and improve the
utilization rates of each of the other solid organs. The organ
transplant market is approximately $9 billion in the U.S., of which
$1.8 billion is spent on organ procurement and transportation.
OTS's FDA clinical trial in the United States is planned for 15 of
the major cardiac transplant centers throughout the country.
OTS's Board of Directors
includes Tommy G. Thompson, former U.S. Secretary of Health and
Human Services and initial leader of the Donor Organ Breakthrough
Collaborative. Thompson says, "OTS is ready to provide the world
with a better model for donor organ utilization. By joining
Healthcare of Today and its uniquely networked set businesses, we
will have an additional strategic framework and partnerships to
move us more aggressively toward our goals. Our alliance with
Healthcare of Today arises naturally from the fact that OTS and
HOTI share the belief that offering the healthcare field better,
more efficient, higher quality options for the work they do,
resulting in better patient outcomes, is not a luxury, it's a
necessity."
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