Abbott Labs will pay $225M to buy mitral valve device maker and invests in a second company

Medical device maker Abbott Laboratories said Thursday it has agreed to buy replacement heart valve maker Tendyne Holdings for $225 million, and has invested in a second company in the field.

The deals could expand Abbott's line of products used to repair leaky mitral valves without open heart surgery. Abbott sells one such device under the name MitraClip. Tendyne is conducting a U.S. clinical trial of a product called the bioprosthetic mitral valve system and it plans to start a study in 2016 to support approval of the device in Europe.

Abbott said it could make additional payments based on regulatory development of the Roseville, Minnesota-based company's products. It expects to complete the deal during the third quarter. The North Chicago, Illinois-based company made an investment in Tendyne in 2012.

The company also said it provided capital to Cephea Valve Technologies of Santa Cruz, California, and received an option to buy the company. Abbott did not disclose terms of that deal. It said Cephea is developing a mitral valve replacement that is placed in the heart through a catheter, like Abbott's MitraClip is.

Both Tendyne and Cephea are privately held.

The mitral valve is between the left upper and lower chambers in the heart, and Abbott's MitraClip clips together the leaflets of the valve so the heart can pump blood more efficiently. The Food and Drug Administration approved the device in October 2013, and Abbott says around 25,000 people have been treated with it worldwide.

Shares of Abbott Laboratories lost 27 cents to $50.79 in afternoon trading. Its shares have risen more than 18 percent over the past year.