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Swemed was acquired. Swemed manufactures and markets medical device products for in vitro fertilization, and had a turnover of SEK 31.5 million during 2005.
Steen Solution™, a solution for the testing of lung function outside the body before transplantation, is approved for sales in Europe.
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510(k) – sales approval in the USA – for ICSI™ (intracytoplasmatic sperm injection, a technology for the treatment of male infertility) is obtained.
A new product line called GIII Series Plus, media from the GIII Series supplemented with human albumin (ready-to-use), is introduced.
A patent concerning the use of alanyl-glutamine is obtained.
Expansion of the office and storage space at the facility in Kungsbacka is completed.
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Vitrolife receives marketing approval from FDA for new products within Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) and European approval (CE mark) for a complete series of products within ART.
Substantial reinforcement of the marketing organization is begun. Marketing in the US, Canada and the German-speaking countries are taken over from the distributor and marketing under company management is started in the Benelux countries.
Vitrolife’s first two commercial products for stem cell research, VitroHES (a nutrient solution for the culture of human embryonic stem cells) and VitroPBS (a product for frozen storage of human embryonic stem cells), are being introduced.
At the Annual General Meeting Peter Svalander, Vitrolife’s founder and former CEO, resigns from the Board. A research agreement is signed between Vitrolife and Svalander, regarding product development within the area of fertility.
A patent regarding the use of recombinant albumin with or without hyaluronic acid in media for embryos and stem cells is approved in USA.
The first round of production for the market is carried out at the new factory in Denver, USA.
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At the beginning of the year, Magnus Nilsson was appointed CEO. An action plan was initiated, consisting of comprehensive cost-cutting, a new, smaller global organization, production streamlining and an aggressive marketing strategy. The plan was successful and the company was able to show a profit and a positive cash flow for the latter part of the year.
The administration, finance, marketing and logistics departments were transferred from Gothenburg to the production facilities in Kungsbacka, Sweden.
A patent was granted in USA for a new, rapid-freeze storage technique for living cells, called Vitroloop®.
EmbryoGlue® was approved in USA and launched globally. The product aids embryo implantation in the womb.
The subsidiaries (A-Life) which developed the implant with chemically stabilized hyaluronic acid for aesthetic facial treatment were sold in August to Mentor Corp., USA for SEK 60 million free of debt,
plus the option for future royalty income. After this, the group’s activities focus on the core area of expertise: products for preserving and handling living cells and tissues outside the body.
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2002
The sales rights to Ophthalin™ and Fermathron™ as well as the manufacturing plant in Edinburgh, Scotland were divested.
The first commercial media products were shipped from the Kungsbacka production facility and the first products were distributed to american customers from the facility in Denver.
510 (k) approval received from the FDA in USA to market new cell culture media for in-vitro fertilization (the GIII Series), based on recombinant albumin and hyaluronan.
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2001
June 26 the Vitrolife share was listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange’s O-list in conjunction with a new share issue of SEK 160 million.
FDA approval (USA) of Perfadex® was received and the world’s first media for IVF entirely free from blood-extracted material was launched.
The plant in Kungsbacka was acquired.
Clinical trial of product for aesthetic facial surgery (so-called dermal implant) commenced in Europe.
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2000
A merger of equals is completed with Fermentech. Skanditek hereby becomes the largest shareholder in the merged company, which trades under the name Vitrolife.
Professor Stig Steen in Lund conducts the first transplantation procedure on man with lungs from a non heart-beating donor. The lungs were preserved in Vitrolife's solution Perfadex®.
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1999
The hyaluronic acid-based products Fermathron™, for orthopaedic use, and Fermavisc™, for the eye-surgical market, are introduced.
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1998
Scandinavian IVF Science changes its name to Vitrolife. The lung preservation solution Perfadex® is acquired. Co-operation with Professor Stig Steen, within the area of transplantation, is initialized.
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1996
Scandinavian IVF Science presents a fully developed and complete product portfolio of IVF-media. Co-operation between Scandinavian IVF Science and Fermentech, a company in Scotland with production of hyaluronic acid-based products, is initiated.
1994
Scandinavian IVF Science launches the first IVF-product. Collaboration with Dr. Gardner in Denver, Colorado, US is initiated.
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1993
Scandinavian IVF Science, founded in 1989 as a spin-off from the University of Gothenburg and Fertilitetscentrum at the Carlanderska Sjukhemmet, begins its operations.
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1985
Skandigen, now Skanditek, becomes the majority shareholder of Fermentech.
1981
Fermentech, later Vitrolife UK, is founded, focusing on research and production of protein A and hyaluronic acid.
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