Haemonetics Corporation, subsidiaries of Baxter International Inc and Cerus Corporation announced that Baxter and Haemonetics have entered into worldwide agreements that will enable Haemonetics to seamlessly integrate its platelet collection devices with the Intercept Platelet System. The Intercept Platelet System utilizes a pathogen inactivation technology jointly being developed by Baxter and Cerus. Upon regulatory approval of this system, this agreement will allow Haemonetics to offer its worldwide platelet collection customers an easy and economical way to incorporate the Intercept Platelet System into their operations, making pathogen inactivation more widely available to platelet transfusion recipients.

Pathogen safety is an emerging issue in the platelet collection market. Baxter and Cerus Corporation are jointly developing the Intercept Platelet System to protect against transmission of infectious diseases through platelet transfusion. Haemonetics and Baxter are worldwide market leaders in automated platelet collection.

According to the terms of the agreement, Baxter will grant Haemonetics access to Intersol solution, a proprietary platelet additive solution necessary for use with the Intercept Platelet System. Baxter will also provide technical requirements and regulatory support to Haemonetics to enable seamless integration of Haemonetics' platelet collection technology with the Intercept Platelet System. Haemonetics will pay Baxter $10 million, and will make additional milestone payments over the next several years totaling up to $14.5 million as regulatory approvals are received in various geographies around the world. 1

Baxter and Cerus are collaborating on the development of the Intercept Blood Systems, which utilize Cerus' Helinx technology, to enhance the safety of blood transfusions. These systems are being developed to inactivate viruses, bacteria, other pathogens and white blood cells. A CE Mark application seeking European approval for the Intercept Platelet System has been submitted and the regulatory filing process has begun in the United States.

More than four million platelet transfusions are performed annually in Western Europe, North America and Japan to prevent bleeding in a variety of patients, including those undergoing cancer therapy and surgical procedures. Donated platelets are generally tested for certain pathogens, but testing does not eliminate the risk of viral contamination, and there are no routine tests to screen for bacteria, which are of particular concern as bacteria can quickly multiply in platelet products.

Blood components may be collected through manual collections of whole blood or an automated system. The automated process removes a blood component, such as platelets, and returns the remaining blood components, such as red blood cells and plasma, to the donor. In the case of platelets, this process allows more of one component of the blood to be collected than could be obtained from a whole blood donation.