Cerus Release: INTERCEPT Blood System Highlighted At The International Society Of Blood Transfusion (ISBT)

CONCORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS) announced results of 16 abstracts presenting experiences with the INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets, plasma, and red blood cells during the 27^th Regional Congress of the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT) in Copenhagen, Denmark held from June 17 to June 21, 2017. ISBT is one of the premier congresses in blood transfusion science and medicine.

“These studies continue to build the body of evidence demonstrating robust pathogen inactivation performance across the full portfolio of INTERCEPT treated blood components,” noted Dr. Richard Benjamin, Cerus' chief medical officer. “In addition, data presented at ISBT support the European launch of our triple storage container platelet set, showing comparable performance to existing sets while improving economics and operational efficiencies. Data on INTERCEPT red cells continues to demonstrate strong product performance and potentially provides the opportunity to replace gamma irradiation and red cell washing. Lastly, pathogen inactivated cryoprecipitate plasma addresses an important unmet clinical need to correct for fibrinogen deficit in surgery, trauma, and maternal hemorrhage.”

Key presentations of interest include:

• Pathogen Inactivation of Zika, Dengue, and Chikungunya Viruses In All Blood Components, by D Musso, F Santa Maria, A Laughhunn et al: New data combined with previous published studies show that INTERCEPT inactivates Zika, Dengue, and Chikungunya viruses to the limit of detection in plasma, platelet, and red blood cell components.
• Storage Study of Apheresis Platelets In Additive Solution After Photochemical Treating Using a Novel Triple Storage Set, by A Lotents, N de Valensart, S Acqart, F Cognasse, T Najdovski, A Rapaille: Apheresis platelets collected and stored with the triple set compared to the single set showed no significant difference in in vitro platelet function after INTERCEPT treatment for up to seven days of storage.
• Evaluation of Pathogen Reduced (Amotosalen-UVA) Pooled Cryoprecipitate and Cryoprecipitate-Poor Plasma, by L Amorim, T Ferreira, J Oliveira, F Azevedo, A Oliveira, M Lopes: For patients in need of cryoprecipitate and cryoprecipitate-poor plasma, pathogen inactivation improves both safety and availability. In addition, the authors make the case for the system to improve overall cryoprecipitate production at a lower cost.
• Robustness of the INTERCEPT Blood System for Red Blood Cells, by A Erickson, M Schott, B Warbington, G Villegas, D Hanson, N Mufti: Red blood cell units treated with pathogen inactivation met the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Healthcare (EDQM) guidelines with respect to hematocrit, hemoglobin content and hemolysis at end of storage.
• Implementation of double dose pathogen-inactivated platelets in routine with productivity and cost optimization, by MB S. Madsen: By replacing gamma irradiation and bacterial detection, converting to production of double-dose buffy coat platelets, and replacing automated platelet production with manual processing, the Blood Center of the Aalborg University Hospital has demonstrated the ability to produce INTERCEPT platelets with a 13% reduction in cost compared to their prior conventional platelet supply.

A full list of abstracts can be viewed at www.cerus.com/Events/news-and-events/ISBT-Copenhagen/.

ABOUT CERUS

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company focused in the field of blood transfusion safety. The INTERCEPT Blood System is designed to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections by inactivating a broad range of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites that may be present in donated blood. The nucleic acid targeting mechanism of action of the INTERCEPT treatment is designed to inactivate established transfusion threats, such as Hepatitis B and C, HIV, West Nile Virus and bacteria, as well as emerging pathogens such as chikungunya, malaria and dengue. Cerus currently markets and sells the INTERCEPT Blood System for both platelets and plasma in the United States, Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Middle East and selected countries in other regions around the world. The INTERCEPT red blood cell system is in clinical development. See www.cerus.com for information about Cerus.