Cerus Announces Collaboration Agreement With Haemonetics for the Use of Acrodose Platelet Kits With the INTERCEPT Blood System for Platelets

CONCORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Cerus Corporation CERS announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Haemonetics Corporation HAE for the sale of Haemonetics' Acrodose Platelet pooling system with Cerus' INTERCEPT Blood System for pathogen reduction of whole blood derived platelet components.

Under the terms of the five-year agreement, Cerus will have the right to sell Haemonetics' Acrodose PL and Acrodose PLus systems along with its own INTERCEPT Blood System as a combined product offering. The agreement will commence upon FDA approval for use of the INTERCEPT Blood System for the treatment of pooled platelets derived from whole blood collections, for which Cerus plans to submit an application to the FDA.

"The Acrodose systems are used to manufacture the majority of pooled whole blood platelet components produced in the U.S., representing approximately 10% of annual platelet production overall," commented William "Obi" Greenman, Cerus' President and Chief Executive Officer. "This important collaboration with Haemonetics will allow blood centers interested in pathogen reduction to have access to the FDA-approved Acrodose system for creating pooled platelets that meet the INTERCEPT processing specifications."

"Whole blood platelets are a cost-effective production method for some blood centers, potentially made more attractive when combined with INTERCEPT by mitigating hospital concerns regarding the potential increased risk of transfusion-transmitted infections," said Byron Selman, President of Global Markets for Haemonetics. "We believe that the ability to pair our Acrodose system with pathogen reduction via the INTERCEPT Blood System can provide blood centers with additional options for maintaining availability of platelets for transfusion."

Whole blood donations can be processed to yield a unit of red blood cells, a unit of plasma, and a unit of whole blood platelets. Approximately four to five units of whole blood platelets are typically pooled together to yield one adult dose of platelets for transfusion. The Acrodose PL and PLus systems are the only FDA-approved methods allowing blood centers to store pooled whole blood platelets for up to 5 days. If the Acrodose systems are not used, pooled whole blood platelets may only be stored for up to 4 hours, leading to increased handling and logistical demands.

ABOUT CERUS

Cerus Corporation is a biomedical products company focused in the field of blood transfusion safety. The INTERCEPT Blood System is designed to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted infections by inactivating a broad range of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites that may be present in donated blood. The nucleic acid targeting mechanism of action of the INTERCEPT treatment is designed to inactivate established transfusion threats, such as Hepatitis B and C, HIV, West Nile Virus, and bacteria, as well as emerging pathogens such as chikungunya, malaria, and dengue. Cerus currently markets and sells the INTERCEPT Blood System for both platelets and plasma in the United States, Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Middle East, and selected countries in other regions around the world. The INTERCEPT red blood cell system is in clinical development. See www.cerus.com for information about Cerus.

INTERCEPT and the INTERCEPT Blood System are trademarks of Cerus Corporation.

ABOUT HAEMONETICS

Haemonetics HAE is a global healthcare company dedicated to providing innovative blood management solutions for our customers. Together, devices and consumables, information technology platforms, and consulting services deliver a suite of business solutions to help customers improve patient care and reduce the cost of healthcare for blood collectors, hospitals, and patients around the world. Haemonetics' technologies address important medical markets: blood and plasma component collection, the surgical suite, and hospital transfusion services. To learn more about Haemonetics, visit http://www.haemonetics.com.

Acrodose is a trademark of Haemonetics.

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Any statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements relating to the potential submission to and approval by the FDA of the use of the INTERCEPT Blood System for the treatment of whole blood derived platelet components and the market opportunity for a collective INTERCEPT and Acrodose system. These forward-looking statements are based upon Cerus' current expectations. Actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including, without limitation, risks associated with the commercialization and market acceptance of, and customer demand for, the INTERCEPT Blood System; the uncertain and time-consuming regulatory process; that Cerus may not have the resources to support multiple regulatory submissions; adverse market and economic conditions; and other risks detailed in the Cerus' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including in Cerus' quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2015, filed with the SEC on November 6, 2015. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Cerus does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events, changed assumptions or otherwise.

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