InVivo Therapeutics reports net loss of $1,278,000 for first quarter 2011

InVivo Therapeutics (NVIV.OB), a medical device company focused on the development of groundbreaking technologies for the treatment of spinal cord injuries (SCI), today reported financial results for the first quarter 2011.

For the three months ended March 31, 2011, the Company reported a net loss of $1,278,000, or $.02 per share, compared to a net loss of $454,000, or $.02 per share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Operating expenses increased by $1,018,000 in the first quarter of 2011 as compared to the prior year as the Company made investments to expand infrastructure and capabilities to support a planned human clinical trial, and incurred costs associated with public company practices. The Company ended the first quarter of 2011 with $6,864,000 in cash.

"We are proud that InVivo has been able to maintain a low cost R&D model even after becoming a public company," said Frank Reynolds, InVivo's Chief Executive Officer. "Our first quarter was marked by a number of significant achievements and milestones. We have moved our lead biopolymer scaffolding product closer to commercialization and our management team has been preparing for the commencement of human clinical trials. InVivo's technology holds great promise for SCI patients: in a number of preclinical SCI models our biopolymer scaffolding devices improved functional recovery following paralysis. Today there is no effective treatment for spinal cord injuries, and we estimate the market potential to be over $10 billion."

Recent Highlights

• Moved forward on biopolymer scaffolding device for SCI.

The Company has been diligently preparing for human studies and has developed a solid clinical protocol. InVivo expects to file an Investigational Device Exemption with the FDA and commence a trial before year-end.

• Formed a strategic partnership with The Miami Project To Cure Paralysis to develop novel SCI treatments.

InVivo's partnership with The Miami Project To Cure Paralysis, the world's most comprehensive spinal cord injury center, will evaluate InVivo's biopolymer devices synergistically combined with the Miami Project's Schwann cells, other cellular therapies and drugs. The alliance has the potential to expand InVivo's pipeline with products for the chronic spinal cord injury population. InVivo has rights to jointly develop any resulting intellectual property and has a first right of offer to license and commercialize any intellectual property developed by the Miami Project.

• Received prestigious Apple Award for top publication in SCI research.

The Company was recently selected by the American Spinal Injury Association as the 2011 recipient of the prestigious Apple Award that recognizes excellence in SCI research. InVivo's seminal publication (2010 Journal of Neuroscience Methods, 188,258,269) reported compelling preclinical results with InVivo's lead biopolymer scaffolding device. InVivo made history when it became the first company to demonstrate improvement in functional recovery after paralysis was induced in a non-human primate SCI model.

• Announced data on novel hydrogel technology.

The Company announced the presentation of data at the 2011 Annual Meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/Central Nervous System Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves. Eric J. Woodard, M.D., InVivo Therapeutics Chief Medical Officer and Chief of Neurosurgery, New England Baptist Hospital, co-authored and presented the poster titled "An injectable thiol-acrylate poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogel for sustained release of methylprednisolone sodium succinate for treatment of spinal cord injury and in neurosurgical applications." The laboratory investigation was designed to evaluate the potential of the Company's hydrogel to overcome limitations associated with systemic administration of high-dose methylprednisolone (MP), a steroid commonly used in the treatment of SCI.

Source: InVivo Therapeutics