Winston-Salem, N.C., April 30, 2010 – KeraNetics LLC, a Wake Forest University Health Sciences spinout with proprietary technology for the manufacture and therapeutic application of keratin biomaterials, announced today that the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery of Wake Forest University Health Sciences in partnership with KeraNetics™ has been awarded a $2.2M grant from the Department of Defense’s Office of Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. The grant is for a multicenter clinical trial for a KeraNetics™ technology used in peripheral nerve regeneration.

“This is the first clinical trial of its kind for a nerve conduit filler that has been shown to promote regeneration of severed nerves in animals”, said Luke Burnett PhD the Director of Product Development and Research at KeraNetics. Dr. Burnett added that “This grant was one of only 5 clinical trials selected from hundreds of qualified proposals through a rigorous peer review process. The fact that our team’s proposal was selected highlights the potential value this product will have for wounded soldiers and the strong research and clinical translation focus that the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery has in areas of trauma and regenerative medicine.”

The Principal Investigator of the trial, Dr. Zhongyu Li, is a renowned Orthopaedic Surgeon and will oversee the study to be conducted at Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem NC and University of Virginia Health System in Charlottesville VA.