USM's placenta bandage to be exported next year

NST: KOTA BARU: Universiti Sains Malaysia's "biological bandage", an amniotic membrane to treat lacerations and scalding, is expected to be on the international market by next year.
The country's leading research university signed a memorandum of agreement with Cryocord, a Malaysian medical biotechnology company specialising in cord blood banking and stem cell research, to market the product in Indonesia, Cambodia and Vietnam, among others.
The membrane is useful in treating first- and second-degree burns, with the healing taking between three and five days without leaving scars.
It is derived from the placenta and was developed by USM's National Tissue Bank (NTB) 15 years ago. Now, 12,000 amniotic membranes have been used to treat patients.
NTB co-ordinator Dr Suzina Sheikh Ab Hamid said the amniotic membrane was being used in government and private hospitals nationwide.
"Since we did not have any channels to market the product outside the country, the amniotic membrane is only used in local hospitals. We were involved in researching and marketing the product.
"Now, we can focus on doing more research on the product and improve its quality since Cryocord will handle the marketing."
Dr Suzina said NTB was also planning to expand its role as the supplier of skin graft and cornea tissues by offering medical biotechnology services in South-east Asia.
At the signing ceremony, USM was represented by its vice-chancellor, Datuk Prof Dzulkifli Abdul Razak, and Dr Suzina, while Cryocord was represented by its managing director Dr James Then and executive director Henry Low.