Dive Brief:
- Johnson & Johnson is selling key assets of Laminar for an undisclosed sum, less than three years after acquiring the development-stage business for $400 million.
- Newly formed Jaguar LAA is buying the assets and plans to continue developing the left atrial appendage closure technology to treat patients with atrial fibrillation, or AFib.
- The transaction comes after a pivotal study of the Laminar device was suspended in mid-2025 due to potential unwrapping of the LAA post implant, with clinically significant leaks.
Dive Insight:
J&J began the investigational device exemption study to evaluate the Laminar technology in February 2024, soon after it bought the business. The trial aimed to compare the implant to Boston Scientific’s Watchman and Abbott’s Amulet LAA closure devices.
LAA procedures are performed to help reduce the risk of stroke in people with AFib, a common type of irregular heart rhythm.
J&J has been working to reshape its medtech portfolio, concentrating on high-growth areas in cardiovascular care and robotic surgery while making plans to spin out its orthopedics business.
The Laminar asset sale “reflects our disciplined approach to portfolio management, focusing our resources where we can have the greatest impact while positioning the Laminar program for long-term success under dedicated ownership,” a J&J spokesperson wrote in an email to MedTech Dive.
Jaguar LAA, the buyer, is a new company formed in partnership with investment firm Santé Ventures and members of the Laminar management team. The company said it plans to build on the clinical and development work already completed and advance the Laminar program through its next stages of development and regulatory review.
A Santé spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on whether a new clinical trial was planned.
Jaguar Chief Medical Officer Jason Rogers, in a statement, said the company believes the Laminar technology offers a differentiated approach to LAA closure, with ability to leave minimal device exposure within the left atrium.
