Locate Bio

Locate Bio is a UK-based regenerative medicine company developing a portfolio of orthobiologic products to improve patient outcomes in orthopaedic surgery. The company was spun out of the University of Nottingham in 2001 by Professor Kevin Shakesheff, an expert in regenerative medicine and drug delivery. Initially a contract research organization, the company has since shifted its focus to developing its own product pipeline. The company is led by CEO John von Benecke, a life sciences executive with experience in taking startups to successful exits, and is backed by investors including Mercia Ventures and BGF.

The company's business model focuses on developing and commercializing medical devices for the global orthobiologics market. Its revenue strategy is based on the sale of these products to surgeons and healthcare providers. Locate Bio has raised a total of $31.6 million over five funding rounds, with the latest Series A round in March 2024 securing $11.8 million to advance clinical trials. In September 2020, the company significantly accelerated its market route by acquiring several late-stage orthobiologic assets from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).

Locate Bio's product development is centered on two main platforms: Instructive Tissue Scaffolds™ and Programmed Drug Release. The product pipeline includes: • **LDGraft™**: A controlled-release bone graft product containing the therapeutic protein rhBMP-2, designed for spinal fusion procedures. It has received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation. • **CertOss™**: A synthetic bone graft substitute that provides a scaffold for new bone growth. • **CognitOss™**: A product combining the CertOss graft with a dual-phasic antibiotic release mechanism to treat and prevent bone infections like osteomyelitis. This product has also been granted FDA Breakthrough Device Designation. • **Chondro3**: A three-layer graft for cartilage repair.

Keywords: orthobiologics, regenerative medicine, bone graft, spinal fusion, cartilage repair, drug delivery, tissue scaffolds, rhBMP-2, osteomyelitis, degenerative disc disease, medical devices, surgical implants, MedTech, biomaterials, tissue engineering, cell therapy, controlled release, bone regeneration, orthopaedic surgery, resorbable graft