Genzyme Corp. on Wednesday proposed a publicoffering of 2.5 million shares, and released positive datafrom Seprafilm studies that should help increase interestamong investors.

The offering comes at a time when Genzyme's stock isriding high. The stock (NASDAQ:GENZ), which wastrading under $30 in January, closed Wednesday at $60,up $2.25. The offering would gross $150 million at thatprice.

Genzyme, of Cambridge, Mass., said it intends to use themoney for a number of corporate purposes, one of whichcould involve the repurchase of programs spun off withseparate financing vehicles: Neozyme II Corp., which isdeveloping cystic fibrosis therapies, and GenzymeDevelopment Partners L.P., which owns certain rights tothe HAL line of products, one of which is Seprafilm.

Genzyme has about 27.7 million shares outstanding andhad $86.4 million in cash and equivalents on June 30,1995, when it reported $11 million in net income for thequarter.

The company's balance sheet is expected to become evenstronger when the HAL products, made from hyaluronicacid, are rolled out. Company officials have said theyexpect Seprafilm (formerly called HAL-F) and thoseproducts behind it to become their biggest sellers.

Genzyme said Wednesday that Seprafilm bioresorbablemembrane, used to prevent postsurgical adhesions,achieved statistically significant results vs. an untreatedcontrol group in four endpoints in gynecologicindications. Based on those results _ and positive resultsreleased last January in abdominal indications _ thecompany plans to file a premarket approval applicationwith the FDA next month.

Authorizations have been obtained to export Seprafilm tothe Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark and Ireland. Thecompany plans to test-market the product in theNetherlands by the end of the year, and file for premarketapproval in the European Community in the first half of1996.

Seprafilm is a synthetic membrane derived fromhyaluronic acid, a natural polysaccharide modified toslow deterioration. It is being developed to preventpostoperative adhesions, which often form where internaltissues have been traumatized during surgery and cancause a number of complications.

The product, designed as a temporary barrier betweentissue surfaces, is applied to the area of trauma before thesurgeon closes the patient. It turns to gel within two days,is absorbed by the body within seven days and excretedwithin a month, so no follow-up surgery is needed, thecompany said.

The randomized, blinded, controlled gynecologic studyinvolved 127 women who had myomectomies, in whichfibroids were removed from the wall of the uterus. Abouthalf the patients received Seprafilm, which was wrappedaround the entire uterus. The other patients had surgeryonly.

Analysis of the data from a blinded reviewer revealedfour statistically significant results for the Seprafilmgroup: it had fewer adhesions to the uterus, less surfacearea of the uterus affected by adhesion, adhesions thatwere less extensive and adhesions that were less severe.Also, there were no safety problems.

Stephen Push, Genzyme's vice president for corporatecommunications, told BioWorld Today the specificnumbers will not be revealed in order to give theinvestigators a chance to go through the peer-reviewprocess. But investigators from the abdominal study ofSeprafilm will be presenting their results Oct. 24, 1995, atthe annual meeting of the American College of Surgeonsin New Orleans.

Genzyme is limited in what it can say because it is underregistration. But previously it said the market opportunityfor adhesion-control products exceeds $400 million andcould exceed $1 billion annually. n

-- Jim Shrine Staff Writer

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