UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 8-K

Current Report

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):  December 16, 2016

Vericel Corporation

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

001-35280

(Commission File Number)

64 Sidney Street

Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

(Address of principal executive offices, with zip code)

(800) 556-0311

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

o            Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

o            Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

o            Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

o            Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 1.01 Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On December 16, 2016, Vericel Corporation (the “Company,” “Vericel” or “we”) entered into a purchase agreement (“Purchase Agreement”) with Piper Jaffray & Co., as representative of the underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”), relating to the issuance and sale of 6,200,000 of the Company’s common stock, at a price to the public of $2.75 per share. Pursuant to the Purchase Agreement, the Underwriters have agreed to purchase the shares from us at a price of $2.56 per share. The net proceeds to us from this offering are expected to be approximately $15.6 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated offering expenses payable by us. The sale of shares of common stock is expected to close on or about December 21, 2016, subject to customary closing conditions. In addition, under the terms of the Purchase Agreement, we have granted the Underwriters an option, exercisable for 30 days from the date of the Purchase Agreement, to purchase up to an additional 930,000 shares of our common stock to cover over-allotments, if any.

The Purchase Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and agreements by us, customary conditions to closing, indemnification obligations of Vericel and the Underwriters, including for liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, other obligations of the parties and termination provisions. The representations, warranties and covenants contained in the Purchase Agreement were made only for purposes of such agreement and as of specific dates, were solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, and may be subject to limitations agreed upon by the contracting parties.

The offering is being made pursuant to the Company’s effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (Registration Statement No. 333-205336), including the prospectus dated July 15, 2015, contained therein, and the related prospectus supplement.

A copy of the Purchase Agreement is filed as Exhibit 1.1 to this report, and the foregoing description of the Purchase Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to such exhibit. A copy of the opinion of Dykema Gossett PLLC relating to the legality of the issuance and sale of the securities in these offerings is attached as Exhibit 5.1 hereto.

Item 9.01 Exhibits.

(d)  Exhibits.

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

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Exhibit Index

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Exhibit 1.1

EXECUTION VERSION

6,200,000 Shares

VERICEL CORPORATION

Common Stock

PURCHASE AGREEMENT

December 16, 2016

PIPER JAFFRAY & CO.
As Representative of the several
Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
c/o Piper Jaffray & Co.
800 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Vericel Corporation, a Michigan corporation (the “Company”), proposes to sell to the several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”) for whom Piper Jaffray & Co. is acting as representative (the “Representative”), an aggregate of 6,200,000 authorized but unissued shares (the “Firm Shares”) of common stock, no par value per share (the “Common Stock”), of the Company.  The Company has also granted to the several Underwriters an option to purchase up to 930,000 additional shares of Common Stock, on the terms and for the purposes set forth in Section 2 hereof (the “Option Shares”).  The Firm Shares and any Option Shares purchased pursuant to this Purchase Agreement (this “Agreement”) are herein collectively called the “Securities.”

1.                                      Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the several Underwriters as follows:

(a)                                 A registration statement of the Company on Form S-3 (File No. 333-205336) (including all pre-effective amendments thereto, the “Initial Registration Statement”) in respect of the Securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The Company meets the requirements for use of Form S-3 under the Securities Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (the “Rules and Regulations”), including any limitations regarding the sale of securities thereunder. The Initial Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, each in the form heretofore delivered to you, and, excluding exhibits thereto, to you for each of the other Underwriters, have been declared effective by the Commission in such form and meet the requirements of the Securities Act, and the Rules and Regulations. Other than (i) a registration statement, if any, increasing the size of the offering filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations (a “Rule 462(b) Registration Statement”), (ii) the Prospectus (as defined below) contemplated by this Agreement to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations in accordance with Section 3(a) hereof and (iii) any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (as defined below), no other document with respect to the offer and sale of the Securities has heretofore been filed with the Commission. No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Initial Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment thereto or the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, has been issued and no proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act has been initiated or threatened by the Commission (any preliminary prospectus included in the Initial Registration Statement or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) of the Rules and Regulations is hereinafter called a

“Preliminary Prospectus”). The various parts of the Initial Registration Statement and the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, in each case including all exhibits thereto and including (i) the information contained in the Prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations and deemed by virtue of Rules 430A, 430B and 430C under the Securities Act to be part of the Initial Registration Statement at the time it became effective and (ii) the documents incorporated by reference in the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement at the time the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement became effective, are hereinafter collectively called the “Registration Statements.” The base prospectus included in the Initial Registration Statement at the time of effectiveness thereof, as supplemented by the final prospectus supplement relating to the offer and sale of the Securities, in the form filed pursuant to and within the time limits described in Rule 424(b) under the Rules and Regulations, is hereinafter called the “Prospectus.”

Any reference herein to any Registration Statement, Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein. Any reference to any amendment or supplement to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any documents filed after the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and incorporated by reference in such Preliminary Prospectus or Prospectus, as the case may be. Any reference to (i) any Registration Statement shall be deemed to refer to and include the annual report of the last completed fiscal year of the Company on Form 10-K filed under Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act prior to the date hereof and (ii) the effective date of such Registration Statement shall be deemed to refer to and include the date such Registration Statement became effective and, if later, the date such Form 10-K was so filed. Any reference to any amendment to the Registration Statements shall be deemed to refer to and include any annual report of the Company filed pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the date of this Agreement that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statements.

(b)                                 As of the Applicable Time (as defined below) and as of the Closing Date, as the case may be, neither (i) the General Use Free Writing Prospectus(es) (as defined below) issued at or prior to the Applicable Time, the Pricing Prospectus (as defined below) and the information included on Schedule II hereto, all considered together (collectively, the “General Disclosure Package”), (ii) any individual Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus (as defined below), (iii) nor the bona fide electronic road show (as defined in Rule 433(h)(5) of the Rules and Regulations that has been made available without restriction to any person), when considered together with the General Disclosure Package, included or will include any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representations or warranties as to information contained in or omitted from the Pricing Prospectus, in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information the parties hereto agree is limited to the Underwriter’s Information as defined in Section 5(f). As used in this paragraph (b) and elsewhere in this Agreement.

“Applicable Time” means 8:30 a.m., New York time, on the date of this Agreement or such other time as agreed to by the Company and the Representative.

“Pricing Prospectus” means the Preliminary Prospectus, if any, and the Prospectus, each as amended and supplemented immediately prior to the Applicable Time, including any document incorporated by reference therein and any prospectus supplement deemed to be a part thereof.

“Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” means any “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations relating to the Securities in the form filed or required to be filed with the

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Commission or, if not required to be filed, in the form retained in the Company’s records pursuant to Rule 433(g) of the Rules and Regulations.

“General Use Free Writing Prospectus” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is identified on Schedule I to this Agreement.

“Limited Use Free Writing Prospectuses” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is not a General Use Free Writing Prospectus.

(c)                                  No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus relating to the proposed offering of the Securities has been issued by the Commission, and no proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act has been instituted or, to the Company’s Knowledge (as defined below),  threatened by the Commission, and each Preliminary Prospectus, at the time of filing thereof, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations, and did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representations or warranties as to information contained in or omitted from any Preliminary Prospectus, in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information the parties hereto agree is limited to the Underwriters’ Information as defined in Section 5(f).

(d)                                 At the respective times the Registration Statements and any amendments thereto became or become effective, at the date of this Agreement and at the Closing Date, each Registration Statement and any amendments thereto conformed and will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and did not and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; and the Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto, at the time the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto was issued and at the Closing Date, conformed and will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and did not and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the foregoing representations and warranties in this paragraph (d) shall not apply to information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statements or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information the parties hereto agree is limited to the Underwriters’ Information (as defined in Section 5(f)). The Prospectus contains all required information under the Securities Act with respect to the Securities and the distribution of the Securities.

(e)                                  Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as of its issue date and at all subsequent times through the completion of the public offer and sale of the Securities or until any earlier date that the Company notified or notifies the Representative as described in Section 3(c), did not, does not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts or will conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, including any document incorporated by reference therein and any prospectus supplement deemed to be a part thereof that has not been superseded or modified, or included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances prevailing at the subsequent time, not misleading.  The foregoing sentence does not apply to statements in or omissions from any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in reliance upon, and in

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conformity with, written information furnished to the Company by the Representative by or on behalf of the Underwriters specifically for inclusion therein, which information the parties hereto agree is limited to the Underwriters’ Information.

(f)                                   The documents incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, when they were filed with the Commission conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder and none of such documents contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made,   not misleading; and any further documents so filed and incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, when such documents are filed with Commission will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

(g)                                  The Company has not, directly or indirectly, distributed and will not distribute any offering material in connection with the proposed offering and sale of the Securities other than any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus and other materials, if any, permitted under the Securities Act and consistent with Section 3(b) below. The Company will file with the Commission all Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses (other than a “road show,” as described in Rule 433(d)(8) of the Rules and Regulations)in the time and manner required under Rules 163(b)(2) and 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations.

(h)                                 At the time of filing the Initial Registration Statement, any 462(b) Registration Statement and any post-effective amendments thereto, and at the date hereof, the Company was not, and the Company currently is not, an “ineligible issuer,” as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations, including the Company in the preceding three years not having been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor or having been made the subject of a judicial or administrative decree or order as described in Rule 405 under the Securities Act (without taking account of any determination by the Commission pursuant to Rule 405 that it is not necessary that the Company be considered an ineligible issuer), nor an “excluded issuer” as defined in Rule 164 under the Securities Act.

(i)                                     The Company and each of its subsidiaries have been duly organized and are validly existing as corporations or other legal entities in good standing (or the foreign equivalent thereof) under the laws of their respective jurisdictions of organization. The Company and each of its subsidiaries are duly qualified to do business and are in good standing, or validly existing as the case may be, as foreign corporations or other legal entities in each jurisdiction in which their respective ownership or lease of property or the conduct of their respective businesses requires such qualification and have all power and authority (corporate or other) necessary to own or hold their respective properties and to conduct the businesses in which they are engaged, except where the failure to so qualify or have such power or authority would not (i) have, singularly or in the aggregate, a material adverse effect on the condition (financial or otherwise), results of operations, assets, business or prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, or (ii) impair in any material respect the ability of the Company to perform its obligations under this Agreement or to consummate any transactions contemplated by this Agreement, including the issuance or sale of the Securities by the Company (any such effect as described in clauses (i) or (ii), a “Material Adverse Effect”). Other than ownership of its subsidiaries, Aastrom Biosciences GmbH, Germany, Marrow Donation, LLC and Vericel Denmark ApS, the Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any interest in any corporation, partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company, association or other entity.

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(j)                                    This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid, legal and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable in accordance with its terms, except as rights to indemnity hereunder may be limited by federal or state securities laws and except as such enforceability may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or similar laws affecting the rights of creditors generally and subject to general principles of equity.  The Company has full corporate power and authority to enter into this Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby, including the authorization, issuance and sale of the Securities as contemplated by this Agreement.

(k)                                 The Securities to be issued and sold by the Company to the Underwriters hereunder have been duly and validly authorized and, when issued and delivered against payment therefor as provided herein, will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable and free of any preemptive or similar rights and will conform to the description thereof contained in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(l)                                     The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth under the heading “Description of Capital Stock” in the Pricing Prospectus, and all of the issued shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable, have been issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws and conform in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. As of December 15, 2016, there were 25,714,972 shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding and 3,360,770 shares of Common Stock were issuable upon the exercise of all options, warrants and convertible securities outstanding as of such date. Since such date, the Company has not issued any securities other than Common Stock of the Company issued pursuant to the exercise of stock options previously outstanding under the Company’s stock option plans. All of the Company’s options, warrants and other rights to purchase or exchange any securities for shares of the Company’s capital stock have been duly authorized and validly issued and were issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws. None of the outstanding shares of Common Stock was issued in violation of any preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or other similar rights to subscribe for or purchase securities of the Company. There are no authorized or outstanding shares of capital stock, options, warrants, preemptive rights, rights of first refusal or other rights to purchase, or equity or debt securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for, any capital stock of the Company or any of its subsidiaries other than those described above or accurately described in the General Disclosure Package. The description of the Company’s stock option, stock bonus and other stock plans or arrangements, and the options or other rights granted thereunder, as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, accurately and fairly present the information required to be shown with respect to such plans, arrangements, options and rights.

(m)                             All the outstanding shares of capital stock (if any) of each subsidiary of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued, are fully paid and nonassessable and, except to the extent set forth in the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, are owned by the Company directly or indirectly through one or more wholly-owned subsidiaries, free and clear of any claim, lien, encumbrance, security interest, restriction upon voting or transfer or any other claim of any third party.

(n)                                 The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Company, the issue and sale of the Securities by the Company and the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby will not (with or without notice or lapse of time or both) (i) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, constitute a default or a Debt Repayment Triggering Event (as defined below) under, give rise to any right of termination or other right or the cancellation or acceleration of any right or obligation or loss of a benefit under, or give rise to the creation or imposition of any lien, encumbrance, security interest, claim or charge upon any property or assets of the Company or any subsidiary pursuant to, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement

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or instrument to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject, (ii) result in any violation of the provisions of the articles of incorporation or by-laws (or analogous governing instruments, as applicable) of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or (iii)  result in any violation of the provisions of any law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree of any court or governmental agency or body, domestic or foreign, having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties or assets; except, in the case of clause (iii), to the extent that such event is not reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. A “Debt Repayment Triggering Event” means any event or condition that gives, or with the giving of notice or lapse of time would give the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holder’s behalf) the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Company of any of its subsidiaries.

(o)                                 No consent, approval, authorization or order of, or filing, qualification or registration (each an “Authorization”) with, any court, governmental or non-governmental agency or body, foreign or domestic, which has not been made, obtained or taken and is not in full force and effect, is required for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Company, the offer or sale of the Securities or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, except for (i) the registration of the Securities under the Securities Act Exchange Act and applicable state securities laws, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) and the NASDAQ Capital Market (the “Exchange”) in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Securities by the Underwriters and the listing of the Securities on the Exchange and (ii) such Authorizations (other than those set forth in clause (i)), the failure of which to obtain or make is not reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.  No event has occurred that allows or results in, or after notice or lapse of time or both would allow or result in, revocation, suspension, termination or invalidation of any such Authorization or any other impairment of the rights of the holder or maker of any such Authorization. All corporate approvals (including those of stockholders) necessary for the Company to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement have been obtained and are in effect.

(p)                                 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”), which has certified certain financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statements, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, and has audited the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting, is (x) an independent registered public accounting firm within the meaning of Article 2-01 of Regulation S-X and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (the “PCAOB”), (y) a registered public accounting firm (as defined in Section 2(a)(12) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and all rules and regulations promulgated thereunder or implementing the provisions thereof (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”)) and (z) in the performance of its work for the Company, not in violation of the auditor independence requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

(q)                                 The financial statements, together with the related notes and schedules, included or incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and in each Registration Statement fairly present in all material respects the financial position and the results of operations and changes in financial position of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries at the respective dates or for the respective periods therein specified. Such statements and related notes have been prepared in accordance with the generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved except as may be set forth in the related notes included or incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure Package. The financial statements, together with the related notes, included or incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus comply in all material respects with Regulation S-X. No other financial statements or supporting schedules or exhibits are required by Regulation S-X to be described or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statements, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus. The selected

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financial data included or incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus and each Registration Statement fairly present in all material respects the information shown therein as at the respective dates and for the respective periods specified and are derived from the consolidated financial statements incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus and the Prospectus and other financial information. All information contained in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus regarding “non-GAAP financial measures” (as defined in Regulation G) complies with Regulation G and Item 10 of Regulations S-K, to the extent applicable. Except as disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no material off-balance sheet arrangements (as defined in Regulation S-K under the Securities Act, Item 303(a)(4)(ii)) or any other relationships with unconsolidated entities or other persons, that may have a material current or material future effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures, capital resources or significant components of revenue or expenses.

(r)                                    The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the each Registration Statement fairly presents the information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

(s)                                   Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has sustained, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure Package, any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the General Disclosure Package; and, since such date, there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or any Material Adverse Effect or any development which would reasonably be expected to result in any Material Adverse Effect, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the General Disclosure Package.

(t)                                    Except as set forth in the General Disclosure Package, there is no legal or written governmental proceeding to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or of which any property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any officer or director of the Company, in their roles as such, or any employee benefit plan sponsored by the Company is the subject, including any proceeding before the United States Food and Drug Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“FDA”) or comparable federal, state, local or foreign governmental bodies (it being understood that the interaction between the Company and the FDA and such comparable governmental bodies relating to the clinical development and product approval process shall not be deemed proceedings for purposes of this representation), which is required to be described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or a document incorporated by reference therein and is not described therein, or which, singularly or in the aggregate, if determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and to the best of the Company’s knowledge (“Knowledge”), no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or threatened by others. The Company is in compliance with all applicable federal, state, local and foreign laws, regulations, orders and decrees governing its business as prescribed by the FDA, or any other federal, state or foreign agencies or bodies engaged in the regulation of pharmaceuticals or biohazardous substances or materials, except where noncompliance would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. All preclinical and clinical studies conducted by or on behalf of the Company to support approval for commercialization of the Company’s products have been conducted by the Company, or to the Company’s Knowledge by third parties, in compliance with all applicable federal, state or foreign laws, rules, orders and regulations, except for such failure or failures to be in compliance as could not reasonably be expected to have, singly or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect.

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(u)                                 There are no statutes or regulations that are material to the business of the Company and that are required to be described in the Registration Statement, in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus or required to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement by the Securities Act or by the Rules and Regulations that have not been so described or filed.

(v)                                 Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries (i) is in violation of its charter or by-laws (or analogous governing instrument, as applicable), (ii) is in default in any respect, and no event has occurred which, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant or condition contained in any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, lease or other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it is bound or to which any of its material property or assets is subject (including, without limitation, those administered by the FDA or by any foreign, federal, state or local governmental or regulatory authority performing functions similar to those performed by the FDA), (iii) is in violation in any respect of any law, ordinance, governmental rule, regulation or court order, decree or judgment to which it or its property or assets may be subject, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; or (iv) is in violation of any applicable corporate governance requirements set forth in the rules of the Exchange; except, in the case of clauses (ii), (iii) and (iv) of this paragraph (v), for any violations or defaults which, singularly or in the aggregate, would not have a Material Adverse Effect.

(w)                               The Company and each of its subsidiaries possess all licenses, certificates, authorizations and permits issued by, and have made all declarations and filings with, the appropriate local, state, federal or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies (including, without limitation, those administered by the FDA or by any foreign, federal, state or local governmental or regulatory authority performing functions similar to those performed by the FDA) which are necessary for the ownership of their respective properties or the conduct of their respective businesses as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (collectively, the “Governmental Permits”) except where any failures to possess or make the same, singularly or in the aggregate, would not have a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and its subsidiaries are in compliance with all such Governmental Permits and all such Governmental Permits are valid and in full force and effect, except where the noncompliance, validity or failure to be in full force and effect would not, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.  Neither the Company nor any subsidiary has received written notification of any revocation, modification, suspension, termination or invalidation (or proceedings related thereto) of any such Governmental Permit and to the Knowledge of the Company, no event has occurred that allows or results in, or after notice or lapse of time or both would allow or result in, revocation, modification, suspension, termination or invalidation (or proceedings related thereto ) of any such Governmental Permit and the Company has no reason to believe that any such Governmental Permit will not be renewed. The studies, tests and preclinical or clinical trials conducted by or on behalf of the Company that are described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (the “Company Studies and Trials”) were and, if still pending, are being, conducted in all material respects in accordance with experimental protocols, procedures and controls pursuant to, where applicable, accepted professional scientific standards; the descriptions of the results of the Company Studies and Trials contained in the General Disclosure Package and Prospectus are accurate in all material respects; the Company has not received any written notices or correspondence from the FDA or any foreign, state or local governmental body exercising comparable authority requiring the termination, suspension or material modification of any Company Studies or Trials that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and the Company is not aware of any studies, tests or trials the results of which the Company believes reasonably call into question the study, test, or trial results described or referred to in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus when viewed in the context in which such results are described and the clinical state of development.  For the avoidance of doubt, the Company makes no representation or warranty that the results of any studies, tests or preclinical or clinical trials conducted by or on behalf of the Company will be sufficient to obtain governmental approval from the FDA or any foreign, state or

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local governmental body exercising comparable authority or that additional studies, tests or preclinical or clinical trials will reach similar results or conclusions.

(x)                                 Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has granted rights to develop, manufacture, produce, assemble, distribute, license, market or sell its product candidates to any other person and is not bound by any agreement that affects the exclusive right of the Company to develop, manufacture, produce, assemble, distribute, license, market or sell its products.

(y)                                 Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is or, after giving effect to the offering of the Securities and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, will become an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

(z)                                  Neither the Company nor any of its officers or directors has taken or will take, directly or indirectly, any action designed or intended to stabilize or manipulate the price of any security of the Company, or which caused or resulted in, or which might in the future reasonably be expected to cause or result in, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company.

(aa)                          The Company and its subsidiaries own or possess the right to use all (i) valid and enforceable patents, patent applications, trademarks, trademark registrations, service marks, service mark registrations, Internet domain name registrations, copyrights, copyright registrations, licenses, trade secret rights (“Intellectual Property Rights”) and (ii) inventions, software, works of authorships, trademarks, service marks, trade names, databases, formulae, know how, Internet domain names and other intellectual property (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary confidential information, systems, or procedures) (collectively, “Intellectual Property Assets”) necessary to conduct their respective businesses as currently conducted, and as proposed to be conducted and described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The Company and its subsidiaries have not received any opinion from their legal counsel concluding that any activities of their respective businesses infringe, misappropriate, or otherwise violate, valid and enforceable Intellectual Property Rights of any other person, and have not received written notice of any challenge, which is to their Knowledge still pending, by any other person to the rights of the Company and its subsidiaries with respect to any Intellectual Property Rights or Intellectual Property Assets owned or used by the Company or its subsidiaries. To the Knowledge of the Company, the Company and its subsidiaries’ respective businesses as now conducted do not give rise to any infringement of, any misappropriation of, or other violation of, any valid and enforceable Intellectual Property Rights of any other person. All licenses for the use of the Intellectual Property Rights described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are valid, binding upon, and enforceable by or against the parties thereto in accordance to its terms. The Company has complied in all material respects with, and is not in breach nor has received any asserted or threatened claim of breach of any Intellectual Property Rights or Intellectual Property Assets license, and the Company has no knowledge of any breach or anticipated breach by any other person to any Intellectual Property Rights or Intellectual Property Assets license. Except as described in the General Disclosure Package, no claim has been made against the Company alleging the infringement by the Company of any patent, trademark, service mark, trade name, copyright, trade secret, license in or other intellectual property right or franchise right of any person. The Company has taken all reasonable steps to protect, maintain and safeguard its Intellectual Property Rights, including the execution of appropriate nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements. The consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement will not result in the loss or impairment of or payment of any additional amounts with respect to, nor require the consent of any other person in respect of, the Company’s right to own, use, or hold for use any of the Intellectual Property Rights as owned, used or held for use in the conduct of the business as currently

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conducted. The Company has at all times complied with all applicable laws relating to privacy, data protection, and the collection and use of personal information collected, used, or held for use by the Company in the conduct of the Company’s business. All key employees have signed confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with the Company. The Company has taken all necessary actions to obtain ownership of all works of authorship and inventions made by its employees, consultants and contractors during the time they were employed by or under contract with the Company and which relate to the Company’s business. To the Knowledge of the Company, the Company has complied with the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s duty of candor, good faith and disclosure and best mode requirement for any patent applications filed by the Company, and all other requirements for patentability and enforceability of any resultant patents, and has made no material misrepresentation in any such applications.

(bb)                          The Company and each of its subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to, or have valid rights to lease or otherwise use, all items of real or personal property which are material to the business of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, security interests, claims and defects that do not, singularly or in the aggregate, materially affect the value of such property and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any of its subsidiaries; and all of the leases and subleases material to the business of the Company and its subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, and under which the Company or any of its subsidiaries holds properties described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, are in full force and effect, and neither the Company nor any subsidiary has any notice of any material claim of any sort that has been asserted by anyone adverse to the rights of the Company or any subsidiary under any of the leases or subleases mentioned above, or affecting or questioning the rights of the Company or such subsidiary to the continued possession of the leased or subleased premises under any such lease or sublease.

(cc)                            There is (i) no significant unfair labor practice complaint pending against the Company, or any of its subsidiaries, nor to the Knowledge of the Company, threatened against it or any of its subsidiaries, before the National Labor Relations Board, any state or local labor relation board or any foreign labor relations board, and no significant grievance or significant arbitration proceeding arising out of or under any collective bargaining agreement is so pending against the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or, to the Knowledge of the Company, threatened against it and (ii) no strike, lockout, work stoppage, slowdown, union organizing campaign, union demand for recognition or union election petition is pending or, to the Company’s Knowledge, threatened, with respect to the employees of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, and, to the Company’s Knowledge, there is no existing or imminent strike, lockout, work stoppage or slowdown by the employees of its subsidiaries’ principal suppliers, manufacturers, customers or contractors, that would reasonably be expected, singularly or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect. Other than as disclosed to the Underwriters, no key employee or significant group of employees of the Company or any subsidiary has provided, or to the Company’s Knowledge, plans to provide, written notice to the Company of intent to terminate employment with the Company or any such subsidiary.

(dd)                          No “prohibited transaction” (as defined in Section 406 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (“ERISA”), or Section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time (the “Code”)) or “accumulated funding deficiency” (as defined in Section 302 of ERISA) or any of the events set forth in Section 4043(b) of ERISA (other than events with respect to which the thirty (30)-day notice requirement under Section 4043 of ERISA has been waived) has occurred or could reasonably be expected to occur with respect to any employee benefit plan (as defined in Section 3(3) of ERISA) of the Company or any of its subsidiaries which could, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. Each employee benefit plan (as defined in Section 3(3) of

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ERISA) of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is in compliance in all material respects with applicable law, including ERISA and the Code.  The Company and its subsidiaries have not incurred and could not reasonably be expected to incur liability under Title IV of ERISA with respect to the termination of, or withdrawal from, any pension plan (as defined in Section 3(2) of ERISA). Each pension plan that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code is so qualified, and to the Company’s Knowledge, nothing has occurred, whether by action or by failure to act, which could, singularly or in the aggregate, cause the loss of such qualification.

(ee)                            The Company and each of its subsidiaries (i) is in compliance, in all material respects, with any and all applicable foreign, federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations, treaties, statutes and codes promulgated by any and all governmental authorities (including pursuant to the Occupational Health and Safety Act) relating to the protection of human health and safety in the workplace (“Occupational Laws”), (ii) has received all material permits, licenses or other approvals required of it under applicable Occupational Laws to conduct its business as currently conducted and (iii) is in compliance, in all material respects, with all terms and conditions of such permit, license or approval.  No action, proceeding, revocation proceeding, writ, injunction or claim is pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened against the Company or any of its subsidiaries relating to Occupational Laws.

(ff)                              Except as otherwise described in the Prospectus, and except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a Material Adverse Effect (i) neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries is in violation of any federal, state, local or foreign law or regulation relating to pollution or protection of human health or the environment (including, without limitation, ambient air, surface water, groundwater, land surface or subsurface strata) or wildlife, including without limitation, laws and regulations relating to emissions, discharges, releases or threatened releases of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, wastes, toxic substances, hazardous substances, petroleum and petroleum products (collectively, “Materials of Environmental Concern”), or otherwise relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or handling of Materials of Environment Concern (collectively, “Environmental Laws”), which violation includes, but is not limited to, noncompliance with any permits or other governmental authorizations required for the operation of the business of the Company or its subsidiaries under applicable Environmental Laws, or noncompliance with the terms and conditions thereof, nor has the Company or any of its subsidiaries received any written communication, whether from a governmental authority, citizens group, employee or otherwise, that alleges that the Company or any of its subsidiaries is in violation of any Environmental Law; (ii) there is no claim, action or cause of action filed with a court or governmental authority, no investigation with respect to which the Company has received written notice, and no written notice by any person or entity alleging potential liability for investigatory costs, cleanup costs, governmental responses costs, natural resources damages, property damages, personal injuries, attorneys’ fees or penalties arising out of, based on or resulting from the presence, or release into the environment, of any Material of Environmental Concern at any location owned, leased or operated by the Company or any of its subsidiaries, now or in the past (collectively, “Environmental Claims”), pending or, to the Company’s Knowledge, threatened against the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any person or entity whose liability for any Environmental Claim the Company or any of its subsidiaries has retained or assumed either contractually or by operation of law; and (iii) to the Company’s Knowledge, there are no past or present actions, activities, circumstances, conditions, events or incidents, including, without limitation, the release, emission, discharge, presence or disposal of any Material of Environmental Concern, that reasonably could result in a violation of any Environmental Law or form the basis of a potential Environmental Claim against the Company or any of its subsidiaries or against any person or entity whose liability for any Environmental Claim the Company or any of its subsidiaries has retained or assumed either contractually or by operation of law.

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(gg)                            The Company and its subsidiaries each (i) have timely filed, or duly obtained extensions of the time for filing, all necessary federal, state, local and foreign tax returns and all such returns were true, complete and correct, (ii) have paid all federal, state, local and non-U.S. taxes due and payable for which it is liable, including, without limitation, all sales and use taxes and all taxes which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is obligated to withhold from amounts owing to employees, creditors and third parties, other than, in each case, any taxes which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is contesting in good faith and (iii) do not have any tax deficiency that has been assessed or, to its Knowledge, proposed against any of them, except those, in each of the cases described in clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) of this paragraph (gg), that would not, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. The Company and its subsidiaries have not engaged in any “reportable transaction” within the meaning of Section 6707A(c) of the Code and Treasury Regulations Section 1.6011-4(b). The accruals and reserves on the books and records of the Company and its subsidiaries in respect of tax liabilities for any taxable period not yet finally determined are adequate in accordance with GAAP to meet any assessments and related liabilities for any such period, and since December 31, 2014, the Company and its subsidiaries have not incurred any liability for taxes other than in the ordinary course.

(hh)                          The Company and each of its subsidiaries carry, or are covered by, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as is adequate for the conduct of their respective businesses and the value of their respective properties and as is customary for companies engaged in similar businesses in similar industries. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has any reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a Material Adverse Effect. All policies of insurance owned by the Company or any of its subsidiaries are, to the Company’s Knowledge, in full force and effect and the Company and its subsidiaries are in compliance in all material respects with the terms of such policies. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received written notice from any insurer, agent of such insurer or the broker of the Company or any of its subsidiaries that any material capital improvements or any other material expenditures (other than premium payments) are required or necessary to be made in order to continue such insurance. None of the Company or any of its subsidiaries insures risk of loss through any captive insurance, risk retention group, reciprocal group or by means of any fund or pool of assets specifically set aside for contingent liabilities other than as described in the General Disclosure Package.

(ii)                                  The Company and each of its subsidiaries maintains a system of internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15 of the General Rules and Regulations under the Exchange Act (the “Exchange Act Rules”)) that complies with the requirements of the Exchange Act and has been designed by the Company’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer, or under their supervision, to provide reasonable assurances that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain accountability for assets; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences.  Except as described in the General Disclosure Package, since the end of the Company’s most recent audited fiscal year, there has been (A) no material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and (B) no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company’s internal control over financial reporting is overseen by the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Audit Committee”) in accordance with the Exchange Act Rules. The Company has not publicly disclosed or reported to the Audit Committee or to the Board any material weakness, change in internal control over financial reporting or fraud involving management or other employees who have a significant role in the internal control over financial

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reporting (each an “Internal Control Event”), any violation of, or failure to comply with, the U.S. Securities Laws, or any matter which if determined adversely, would have a Material Adverse Effect.

(jj)                                A member of the Audit Committee has confirmed to the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer or General Counsel that, except as set forth in the General Disclosure Package, the Audit Committee is not reviewing or investigating, and neither the Company’s independent auditors nor its internal auditors have recommended that the Audit Committee review or investigate, (i) adding to, deleting, changing the application of or changing the Company’s disclosure with respect to, any of the Company’s material accounting policies, (ii) any matter which could result in a restatement of the Company’s financial statements for any annual or interim period during the current or prior three fiscal years, or (iii) any Internal Control Event.

(kk)                          The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as such is defined in Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act Rules) that comply with the requirements of the Exchange Act; such disclosure controls and procedures have been designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company with respect to itself and its subsidiaries in the reports it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms. The Company has utilized such controls and procedures in preparing and evaluating the disclosures in the Registration Statement, in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus.

(ll)                                  There is no franchise agreement, lease, contract, or other agreement or document required by the Securities Act or by the Rules and Regulations to be described in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus or a document incorporated by reference therein or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statements or a document incorporated by reference therein which is not so described or filed therein as required; and all descriptions of any such franchise agreements, leases, contracts, or other agreements or documents contained in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus or in a document incorporated by reference therein are accurate and complete descriptions of such documents in all material respects. Other than as described in the General Disclosure Package, no such franchise agreement, lease, contract or other agreement has been suspended or terminated for convenience or default by the Company or any of the other parties thereto, and neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has received notice of and the Company does not have Knowledge of any such pending or threatened suspension or termination, except for such suspensions or terminations or pending or threatened suspensions or terminations that would not reasonably be expected to, singularly or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(mm)                  No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company on the one hand, and the directors, officers, stockholders (or analogous interest holders), customers or suppliers of the Company or any of its affiliates on the other hand, which is required to be described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or a document incorporated by reference therein and which is not so described.

(nn)                          No person or entity has the right to require registration of shares of Common Stock or other securities of the Company or any of its subsidiaries because of the filing or effectiveness of the Registration Statements or otherwise, other than disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and except for persons and entities who have expressly waived such right in writing or who have been given timely and proper written notice and have failed to exercise such right within the time or times required under the terms and conditions of such right. Except as described in the General Disclosure Package, there are no persons with registration rights or similar rights to have any securities registered by the Company or any of its subsidiaries under the Securities Act.

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(oo)                          Other than as contemplated by this Agreement and except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus, the Company has not incurred any liability for any finder’s or broker’s fee or agent’s commission or financial advisory or similar fee in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby.

(pp)                          Except as described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, no subsidiary of the Company is currently prohibited, directly or indirectly, under any agreement or other instrument to which it is a party or is subject, from paying any dividends to the Company, from making any other distribution on such subsidiary’s capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to such subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any of such subsidiary’s properties or assets to the Company or any other subsidiary of the Company.

(qq)                          Since the date as of which information is given in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus through the date hereof, and except as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has (i) issued or granted any securities other than options to purchase common stock pursuant to the Company’s stock option plan, (ii) incurred any material liability or obligation, direct or contingent, other than liabilities and obligations which were incurred in the ordinary course of business, (iii) entered into any material transaction other than in the ordinary course of business, or (iv) declared or paid any dividend on its capital stock.

(rr)                                If applicable, all of the information provided to the Underwriters or to counsel for the Underwriters by the Company, its officers and directors and the holders of any securities (debt or equity) or options to acquire any securities of the Company in connection with letters, filings or other supplemental information provided to FINRA pursuant to NASD Conduct rule 2710 or 2720 is, to the Knowledge of the Company, true, correct and complete.

(ss)                              No forward-looking statement (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act) contained in either the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus has been made or reaffirmed without a reasonable basis or has been disclosed other than in good faith.

(tt)                                The Company is subject to and in compliance in all material respects with the reporting requirements of Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act. The Common Stock is registered pursuant to Section 12(b) or 12(g) of the Exchange Act and is listed on the Exchange, and the Company has taken no action designed to, or reasonably likely to have the effect of, terminating the registration of the Common Stock under the Exchange Act or delisting the Common Stock from the Exchange, nor has the Company received any notification that the Commission or FINRA is contemplating terminating such registration or listing. The Company has filed a notification of the listing of the Securities on the Exchange.

(uu)                          Each of the Company, its subsidiaries, its affiliates and, to the Company’s Knowledge, any of their respective officers, directors, supervisors, managers, agents, or employees, has not violated, its participation in the offering will not violate, and the Company and each of its subsidiaries has instituted and maintains policies and procedures designed to ensure continued compliance with, each of the following laws:  anti-bribery laws, including but not limited to, any applicable law, rule, or regulation of any locality, including but not limited to any law, rule, or regulation promulgated to implement the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, signed December 17, 1997, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, the U.K. Bribery Act 2010, or any other law, rule or regulation of similar purposes and scope, or anti-money laundering laws, including but not limited to, applicable federal, state, international,

14

foreign or other laws, regulations or government guidance regarding anti-money laundering, including, without limitation, Title 18 US. Code section 1956 and 1957, the Patriot Act, the Bank Secrecy Act, and international anti-money laundering principles or procedures by an intergovernmental group or organization, such as the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering, of which the United States is a member and with which designation the United States representative to the group or organization continues to concur, all as amended, and any Executive order, directive, or regulation pursuant to the authority of any of the foregoing, or any orders or licenses issued thereunder.

(vv)                          There are no transactions, arrangements or other relationships between and/or among the Company, any of its affiliates (as such term is defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations) and any unconsolidated entity, including, but not limited to, any structured finance, special purpose or limited purpose entity that could reasonably be expected to materially affect the Company’s liquidity or the availability of or requirements for its capital resources required to be described in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or a document incorporated by reference therein which have not been described as required.

(ww)                      There are no outstanding loans, advances (except normal advances for business expenses in the ordinary course of business) or guarantees of indebtedness by the Company or any of its subsidiaries to or for the benefit of any of the officers or directors of the Company, any of its subsidiaries or any of their respective family members, except as disclosed in the Registration Statements, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. All transactions by the Company with office holders or control persons of the Company have been duly approved by the board of directors of the Company, or duly appointed committees or officers thereof, if and to the extent required under U.S. law.

(xx)                          The statistical and market related data included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes to be reliable and accurate in all material respects and such data agree with the sources from which they are derived.

(yy)                          The operations of the Company and its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance in all material respects with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending, or to the Company’s Knowledge, threatened.

(zz)                            Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries nor, to the Company’s Knowledge, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any of its subsidiaries (a) is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”) or  (b) is located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of Sanctions (including, without limitation, Burma/Myanmar, Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC or in any other manner that will result in a violation of U.S. sanctions by any individual or entity (including any individual or entity participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).  For the past five years, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has knowingly engaged in, and is not now knowingly engaged in, any dealings or transactions with any individual or entity, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of U.S. sanctions.

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(aaa)                   The Company and its subsidiaries, individually and on a consolidated basis, are not as of the date hereof, and after giving effect to the transactions contemplated hereby to occur on the Closing Date, will not be Insolvent (as defined below). For purposes of this paragraph (aaa), “Insolvent” means, with respect to any person, (i) the present fair saleable value of such person’s assets is less than the amount required to pay such person’s total Indebtedness, (ii) such person is unable to pay its debts and liabilities, subordinated, contingent or otherwise, as such debts and liabilities become absolute and matured, (iii) such person intends to incur or believes that it will incur debts that would be beyond its ability to pay as such debts mature or (iv) such person has unreasonably small capital with which to conduct the business in which it is engaged as such business is now conducted and is proposed to be conducted.

(bbb)                   Neither the Company nor any of its affiliates (within the meaning of FINRA Rule 5121(f)) directly or indirectly controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, or is an associated person (within the meaning of Article I, Section 1(ee) of the By-laws of FINRA) of, any member firm of FINRA.

(ccc)                      Except as disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company (i) does not have any material lending or other relationship with any bank or lending affiliate of any Underwriter and (ii) does not intend to use any of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities hereunder to repay any outstanding debt owed to any affiliate of any Underwriter.

(ddd)                   To the Knowledge of the Company, and except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, the Company’s manufacturing facilities and operations are in compliance with applicable regulations of the FDA, including current Good Manufacturing Practices.  Each of the Company and its subsidiaries (i) has not received any FDA Form 483, notice of adverse finding, warning letter, untitled letter or other correspondence or notice from the FDA or any other governmental authority alleging or asserting noncompliance with any statutes, rules, or regulations applicable to the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, distribution, marketing, labeling, promotion, sale, offer for sale, storage, import, export or disposal of any product manufactured or distributed by the Company (“Applicable Laws”) or Permits; (ii) has filed, obtained, maintained or submitted all material reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments as required by any Applicable Laws or Permits; and (iii) has not, either voluntarily or involuntarily, initiated, conducted, or issued or caused to be initiated, conducted or issued, any recall, market withdrawal or replacement, safety alert, post sale warning, “dear doctor” letter, or other notice or action relating to the alleged lack of safety or efficacy of any product or any alleged product defect or violation and, to the Company’s knowledge, no third party has initiated, conducted or intends to initiate any such notice or action; except, in the case of each of (i), (ii) and (iii), as would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(eee)                      Within 60 days prior to the filing of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, the aggregate market value of the Company’s voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates was $75,000,000 or more.

(fff)                         Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company in connection with the offering of the Securities pursuant to this Agreement and delivered to you or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to each Underwriter as to the matters covered thereby.

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2.                                      Purchase, Sale and Delivery of Securities.

(a)                                 On the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to issue and sell 6,200,000 Firm Shares to the several Underwriters, and each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto.  The purchase price for each Firm Share shall be $2.5575 per share.  In making this Agreement, each Underwriter is contracting severally and not jointly; except as provided in paragraph (c) of this Section 2 and in Section 7 hereof, the agreement of each Underwriter is to purchase only the respective number of Firm Shares specified in Schedule I.

The Firm Shares will be delivered by the Company to you for the accounts of the several Underwriters against payment of the purchase price therefor by wire transfer of same day funds payable to the order of the Company at the offices of Dechert LLP, 1095 Avenue of Americas, New York, New York 10036 or such other location as may be agreed upon by the Company and the Representative, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time on the third (or if the Securities are priced, as contemplated by Rule 15c6-1(c) under the Exchange Act, after 4:30 p.m. Eastern time, the fourth) full business day following the date hereof, or at such other time and date as you and the Company determine pursuant to Rule 15c6-1(a) under the Exchange Act, such time and date of delivery being herein referred to as the “First Closing Date.”  Delivery of the Firm Shares in book-entry form shall be made by credit through via Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian (“DWAC”) to the accounts at The Depository Trust Company designated by the Representative, unless the Representative shall otherwise instruct.

(b)                                 On the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth the Company, with respect to 930,000 Option Shares hereby grants to the several Underwriters an option to purchase all or any portion of the Option Shares at the same purchase price as the Firm Shares.  The option granted hereunder may be exercised in whole or in part at any time within 30 days after the effective date of this Agreement upon notice by the Representative to the Company setting forth the aggregate number of Option Shares as to which the several Underwriters are exercising the option, the names and denominations in which the Option Shares are to be registered and the date and time, as determined by you, when the Option Shares are to be delivered, such time and date being herein referred to as the “Second Closing” and “Second Closing Date,” respectively and, together with the First Closing Date, the “Closing Date”; provided, however, that the Second Closing Date shall not be earlier than the First Closing Date nor earlier than the second business day after the date on which the option shall have been exercised.  The number of Option Shares to be purchased by each Underwriter shall be the same percentage of the total number of Option Shares to be purchased by the several Underwriters as the number of Firm Shares to be purchased by such Underwriter is of the total number of Firm Shares to be purchased by the several Underwriters, as adjusted by the Representative in such manner as the Representative deems advisable to avoid fractional shares.  No Option Shares shall be sold and delivered unless the Firm Shares previously have been, or simultaneously are, sold and delivered.

The Option Shares will be delivered by the Company to you for the accounts of the several Underwriters against payment of the purchase price therefor by wire transfer of same day funds payable to the order of the Company at the offices of Dechert LLP, 1095 Avenue of Americas, New York, New York 10036, or such other location as may be mutually acceptable at 10:00 a.m., Eastern time, on the Second Closing Date.  Delivery of the Option Shares in book-entry form shall be made by credit via DWAC to the accounts at The Depository Trust Company designated by the Representative, unless the Representative shall otherwise instruct.

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(c)                                  It is understood that you, individually and not as Representative of the several Underwriters, may (but shall not be obligated to) make payment to the Company on behalf of any Underwriter for the Securities to be purchased by such Underwriter.  Any such payment by you shall not relieve any such Underwriter of any of its obligations hereunder.  Nothing herein contained shall constitute any of the Underwriters an unincorporated association or partner with the Company.

3.                                      Covenants.  The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters as follows:

(a)                                 If the Initial Registration Statement has not already been declared effective by the Commission, the Company will use its best efforts to cause the Initial Registration Statement and any post-effective amendments thereto to become effective as promptly as possible; the Company will notify you promptly of the time when the Initial Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment to the Initial Registration Statement has become effective or any supplement to the Prospectus  has been filed and of any request by the Commission for any amendment or supplement to the Initial Registration Statement or Prospectus or additional information; if the Company has elected to rely on Rule 430B of the Rules and Regulations, the Company will prepare and file a Prospectus containing the information omitted therefrom pursuant to Rule 430B of the Rules and Regulations with the Commission within the time period required by, and otherwise in accordance with the provisions of, Rules 424(b) and 430B of the Rules and Regulations; if the Company has elected to rely upon Rule 462(b) of the Rules and Regulations to increase the size of the offering registered under the Securities Act and the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement has not yet been filed and become effective, the Company will prepare and file the Rule 462 Registration Statement with the Commission within the time period required by, and otherwise in accordance with the provisions of, Rule 462(b) and the Securities Act; the Company will prepare and file with the Commission, promptly upon your request, any amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or Prospectus that, based on the advice of counsel, may be necessary or advisable in connection with the distribution of the Securities by the Underwriters; and the Company will furnish the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters a copy of any proposed amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or Prospectus and will not file any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or Prospectus to which you shall reasonably object by notice to the Company after having been furnished a copy a reasonable time prior to the filing.

(b)                                 The Company will advise you, promptly after it shall receive notice or obtain knowledge thereof, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereto or preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, of the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for any such purpose; and the Company will promptly use its best efforts to prevent the issuance of any stop order or to obtain its withdrawal if such a stop order should be issued.  Additionally, the Company agrees that it shall comply with the provisions of Rules 424(b) and 430B, as applicable, under the Securities Act and will use its reasonable efforts to confirm that any filings made by the Company under Rule 424(b), Rule 433 or Rule 462 were received in a timely manner by the Commission.

(c)                                  Within the time during which a prospectus (assuming the absence of Rule 172) relating to the Securities is required to be delivered under the Securities Act by any Underwriter or dealer (the “Prospectus Delivery Period”), the Company will use its best efforts to comply with all requirements imposed upon it by the Securities Act, as now and hereafter amended, and by the Rules and Regulations, as from time to time in force, so far as necessary to permit the continuance of sales of or dealings in the Securities as contemplated by the provisions hereof, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.  If during such period any event shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which the Prospectus (or

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if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the General Disclosure Package) would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances then existing, not misleading, or if during such period it is necessary to amend the Registration Statement or supplement the Prospectus (or if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the General Disclosure Package) to comply with the Securities Act, the Company will promptly notify you and will amend the Registration Statement or supplement the Prospectus (or, if the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers, the General Disclosure Package) (at the expense of the Company) so as to correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance.

If at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and through the Prospectus Delivery Period, there occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus would conflict, during such time,  with the information contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus relating to the Securities or included or, during such time, would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances prevailing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company promptly will notify the Representative and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict, untrue statement or omission.

(d)                                 The Company shall use its best efforts to take or cause to be taken all necessary action to qualify the Securities for sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as you reasonably designate after consultation with the Company and will use its best efforts to continue such qualifications in effect so long as required for the distribution of the Securities, except that the Company shall not be required in connection therewith to qualify as a foreign corporation or to take any action that would subject it to (i) service of process in suits, other than those arising out of the offering or sale of the Securities, in any jurisdiction where it is not now so subject or (ii) taxation as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction where it is not now so subject.

(e)                                  The Company will furnish or make available, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and counsel for the Underwriters copies of the Registration Statement (one of which will be signed and will include all consents and exhibits filed therewith), and to the Underwriters and any dealer each Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and all amendments and supplements to such documents, in each case as soon as available and in such quantities as you may from time to time reasonably request.

(f)                                   The Company will make generally available to its security holders as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 months after the end of the Company’s current fiscal quarter, an earnings statement (which need not be audited) covering a 12-month period beginning after the effective date of the Initial Registration Statement (or if later the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement) that shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Act and Rule 158 of the Rules and Regulations.

(g)                                  Reserved.

(h)                                 The Company, whether or not the transactions contemplated hereunder are consummated or this Agreement is prevented from becoming effective under the provisions of Section 9 hereof or is terminated, will pay or cause to be paid (A) all expenses (including transfer taxes allocated to the respective transferees) incurred in connection with the delivery to the Underwriters of the Securities, (B) all expenses and fees (including, without limitation, fees and expenses of the Company’s accountants and counsel but, except as otherwise provided below, not including fees of the Underwriters’ counsel) in connection with the preparation, printing, filing, delivery, and shipping of the Registration Statement

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(including the financial statements therein and all amendments, schedules, and exhibits thereto), the Securities, each Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, and the printing, delivery, and shipping of this Agreement and other underwriting documents, including Blue Sky Memoranda (covering the states and other applicable jurisdictions), (C) all reasonable and documented filing fees and reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of the Underwriters’ counsel incurred in connection with the qualification of the Securities for offering and sale by the Underwriters or by dealers under the securities or blue sky laws of the states and other jurisdictions which you shall designate, (D) the fees and expenses of any transfer agent or registrar, (E) the filing fees and reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of Underwriters’ counsel incident to any required review and approval by FINRA of the terms of the sale of the Securities; provided that the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters relating to clauses (C) and (E) of this Section 3(h) shall not exceed $25,000, (F) listing fees, if any, (G) the cost and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations or any “road show” undertaken in connection with marketing of the Securities (including one-half of the expenses incurred in connection with the chartering of any aircraft in connection with the road show, provided that the prior approval of the Company was obtained prior to the chartering of any such aircraft), (H) all other costs and expenses of the Company incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder that are not otherwise specifically provided for herein and (I) all other reasonable out-of-pocket documented costs and expenses of the Underwriters (including reasonable and documented fees and disbursements of counsel) incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder not otherwise specifically provided for herein, provided, however that such costs and expenses provided for in clause (I) shall not exceed $125,000 in the aggregate.  The Company shall not in any event be liable to the Underwriters for loss of any anticipated profits from the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.  If the sale of the Firm Shares provided for herein is not consummated by reason of action by the Company pursuant to Section 8 hereof which prevents this Agreement from becoming effective, if this Agreement is terminated by the Representative pursuant to Section 9 hereof prior to the First Closing, or if the sale of the Firm Shares provided for herein is not consummated by reason of any failure, refusal or inability on the part of the Company to perform any agreement on its or their part to be performed, or because any other condition of the Underwriters’ obligations hereunder required to be fulfilled by the Company prior to the First Closing is not fulfilled, the Company will reimburse the several Underwriters for all out-of-pocket disbursements (including but not limited to reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel, printing expenses, travel expenses, postage, facsimile and telephone charges) incurred by the Underwriters in connection with their investigation, preparing to market and marketing the Securities or in contemplation of performing their obligations hereunder.

(i)                                     The Company will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Securities to be sold by it hereunder for the purposes set forth in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus and will file such reports with the Commission with respect to the sale of the Securities and the application of the proceeds therefrom as may be required in accordance with Rule 463 of the Rules and Regulations.

(j)                                    The Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representative, from the date of execution of this Agreement and continuing to and including the date 90 days after the date of the Prospectus (the “Lock-Up Period”), (A) offer, pledge, announce the intention to sell, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock or (B) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock, whether any such transaction described in clause (A) or (B) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, or (C) publicly announce any intention to do any of the foregoing except (i) to the Underwriters pursuant

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to this Agreement, (ii) to directors, officers, employees and consultants of the Company pursuant to employee benefit plans, equity incentive plans or other employee compensation plans existing on the date hereof and as described in the Prospectus, (iii) pursuant to the exercise or conversion of any options, warrants, rights or convertible securities outstanding on the date hereof or (iv) pursuant to its “at-the-market” sales agreement with Cowen and Company, LLC, dated October 10, 2016 .  The Company agrees not to accelerate the vesting of any option or warrant or the lapse of any repurchase right prior to the expiration of the Lock-Up Period.

(k)                                 The Company has caused to be delivered to you prior to the date of this Agreement a letter, in the form of Exhibit A hereto (the “Lock-Up Agreement”), from each of the Company’s directors and officers.  The Company will enforce the terms of each Lock-Up Agreement and will issue stop-transfer instructions to the transfer agent for the Common Stock with respect to any transaction or contemplated transaction that would constitute a breach of or default under the applicable Lock-Up Agreement.

(l)                                     The Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or which would reasonably be expected to cause or result in, or which has constituted, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities, and has not effected any sales of Common Stock which are required to be disclosed in response to Item 701 of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act which have not been so disclosed in the Registration Statement.

(m)                             Other than as contemplated by this Agreement, the Company will not incur any liability for any finder’s or broker’s fee or agent’s commission in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby.

(n)                                 During the Prospectus Delivery Period, the Company will file with the Commission such periodic and other reports as required by the Rules and Regulations.

(o)                                 The Company and its subsidiaries will maintain such controls and other procedures, including without limitation those required by Sections 302 and 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the applicable regulations thereunder, that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms, including without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including its principal executive officer and its principal financial officer, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure, to ensure that material information relating to Company, including its subsidiaries, is made known to them by others within those entities.

(p)                                 The Company and its subsidiaries will comply with all applicable provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

(q)                                 The Company represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Representative, and each Underwriter severally represents and agrees that, unless it obtains the prior written consent of the Company and the Representative, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433 under the Securities Act, or that would otherwise constitute a “free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, required to be filed with the Commission; provided that the prior written consent of the parties hereto shall be deemed to have been given in respect of the free writing

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prospectuses included in Schedule III.  Any such free writing prospectus consented to by the Company and the Representative is hereinafter referred to as a “Permitted Free Writing Prospectus.”  The Company represents that it has treated or agrees that it will treat each Permitted Free Writing Prospectus as an “issuer free writing prospectus,” as defined in Rule 433, and has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rules 164 and 433 applicable to any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus, including timely Commission filing where required, legending and record keeping.  The Company represents that it has satisfied and agrees that it will satisfy the conditions in Rule 433 to avoid a requirement to file with the Commission any electronic road show.

(r)                                    To supply the Representative with copies of all correspondence to and from, and all documents issued to and by, the Commission in connection with the registration of the Securities under the Securities Act or any of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto or document incorporated by reference therein.

(s)                                   Prior to the latest of the Closing Dates, not to issue any press release or other communication directly or indirectly or hold any press conference with respect to the Company, its condition, financial or otherwise, or earnings, business affairs or business prospects (except for routine oral marketing communications in the ordinary course of business and consistent with the past practices of the Company and of which the Representative is notified), without the prior written consent of the Representative, unless in the judgment of the Company and its counsel, and after notification to the Representative, such press release or communication is required by law.

(t)                                    To maintain, at its expense, a registrar and transfer agent for the Securities.

(u)                                 To maintain the listing of the Securities on the Exchange.

4.                                      Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations. The obligations of the several Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy, as of the date hereof and at each of the First Closing Date and the Second Closing Date (as if made at such Closing Date), of and compliance with all representations, warranties and agreements of the Company contained herein, to the performance by the Company and to the following additional conditions:

(a)                                 The Registration Statement shall have become effective not later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern time, on the date of this Agreement, or such later time and date as you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, shall approve and all filings required by Rules 424, 430B and 433 of the Rules and Regulations shall have been timely made (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) or Rule 164(b)); no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof or any amendment thereof, nor suspending or preventing the use of the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus  shall have been issued; no proceedings for the issuance of such an order shall have been initiated or threatened; and any request of the Commission for additional information (to be included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or otherwise) shall have been complied with to your satisfaction.

(b)                                 The Representative shall not have advised the Company that (i) the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto contains an untrue statement of a material fact which, based on the advice of counsel, is material or omits to state a material fact which, based on the advice of counsel to the Underwriters, is required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or (ii) the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, or any amendment thereof or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus contains an untrue statement of fact which, based on the advice of counsel to the Underwriters, is material, or omits to state a fact which, based on the advice of counsel to the Underwriters, is material and is required to be stated therein, or

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necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading.

(c)                                  Except as contemplated in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus, subsequent to the respective dates as of which information is given in the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company shall have not incurred any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent, or entered into any material transactions, or declared or paid any dividends or made any distribution of any kind with respect to its capital stock; and there shall not have been any change in the capital stock (other than a change in the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock due to the issuance of shares upon the exercise or conversion of outstanding options, warrants, rights or convertible securities), or any material change in the short-term or long-term debt of the Company, or any issuance of options, warrants, convertible securities or other rights to purchase the capital stock of the Company except pursuant to equity compensation plans or arrangements described in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus, or any Material Adverse Effect or any development that would result in a Material Adverse Effect (whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business), that, in your judgment, makes it impractical or inadvisable to offer or deliver the Securities on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus.

(d)                                 On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion and negative assurance letter of Goodwin Procter LLP, corporate counsel for the Company, each dated such Closing Date and addressed to you in a form mutually agreed upon.

(e)                                  On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion of Dykema Gossett PLLC, Michigan counsel for the Company, each dated such Closing Date and addressed to you in a form mutually agreed upon.

(f)                                   On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, the opinion of Cooley LLP, intellectual property counsel for the Company, each dated such Closing Date and addressed to you in a form mutually agreed upon.

(g)                                  On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to the Underwriters, the opinion and letter of negative assurance of Dechert LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, dated such closing date and addressed to the Underwriters with respect to the formation of the Company, the validity of the Securities, the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus and other related matters as you reasonably may request, and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(h)                                 On the date hereof and on each Closing Date you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, shall have received a letter from PwC, dated such date and addressed to you, confirming that it is an independent registered public accounting firm within the meaning of the Securities Act and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualifications of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, and stating, as of the date of such letter (or, with respect to matters involving changes or developments since the respective dates as of which specified financial information is given in the General Disclosure Package, as of a date not prior to the date hereof or more than five days prior to the date of such letter), the conclusions and findings of said firm with respect to the financial information and other matters covered by its letter delivered to you concurrently with the execution of this Agreement, and the effect of the letter so to be delivered on such Closing Date shall be to confirm the conclusions and findings set forth in such prior letter.

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(i)                                     On each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to you, as Representative of the Underwriters, a certificate, dated such Closing Date and addressed to you, signed by the chief executive officer and by the chief financial officer of the Company, to the effect that (i) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof or any amendment thereof or the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale, nor suspending or preventing the use of the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, has been issued, and, no proceeding for that purpose has been instituted or, to the best of their knowledge, is contemplated by the Commission or any state regulatory body, (ii) such officers have carefully examined the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package, any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus, and, in their opinion, the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto, at the Applicable Time, as of the date of this Agreement and as of such Closing Date did not include any untrue statement of a material fact and did not omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and the General Disclosure Package, as of the Applicable Time and as of the Closing Date, any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus as of its date and as of the Closing Date, the Prospectus and each amendment or supplement thereto, as of the respective date thereof and as of the Closing Date, did not include any untrue statement of a material fact and did not omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances in which they were made, not misleading, (iii) since the effective date of the Initial Registration Statement, no event has occurred which should have been set forth in a supplement or amendment to the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that has not been so set forth therein, (iv) for the period from and including the date of this Agreement through and including such Closing Date, there has not occurred any Material Adverse Effect and (v) as of such Closing Date, the representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct in all material respects and the Company has complied in all material respects with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to such Closing Date;

(j)                                    The Underwriters shall have received all of the Lock-Up Agreements referenced in Section 3(k).

(k)                                 On the date hereof and on each Closing Date, there shall have been furnished to you, as Representative of the several Underwriters, a certificate of the chief financial officer of the Company with respect to certain financial information, in form and substance satisfactory to you.

(l)                                     On each Closing Date, the Underwriters shall receive a certificate of the Secretary of the Company, in customary form.

(m)                             On each Closing Date, the Securities to be delivered on such closing Date will have been approved for listing on the NASDAQ Capital Market, subject to official notice of issuance.

(n)                                 At or after the Applicable Time, (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded any of the Company’s securities by any “nationally recognized statistical organization,” as that term is defined by the Commission for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Securities Act, and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s securities.

(o)                                 FINRA shall have raised no objection to the fairness and reasonableness of the underwriting terms and arrangements.

(p)                                 The Company shall have furnished to you and counsel for the Underwriters such additional documents, certificates and evidence as you or they may have reasonably requested.

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All such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents mentioned above and elsewhere in this Agreement will be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are satisfactory in form and substance to you and counsel for the Underwriters. The Company will furnish you with such conformed copies of such opinions, certificates, letters and other documents as you shall reasonably request.

5.                                      Indemnification and Contribution.

(a)                                 The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls such Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act (each an “Indemnified Party”), from and against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which the Indemnified Party may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise (including in settlement of any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, if such settlement is effected with the written consent of the Company), insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon (i) an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, including the Rule 430B Information and any other information deemed to be a part of the Registration Statement at the time of effectiveness and at any subsequent time pursuant to the Rules and Regulations, if applicable, any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any materials or information provided to investors by, or with the written approval of, the Company in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Common Stock (“Marketing Materials”), including any road show or investor presentations made to investors by the Company (whether in person or electronically); or (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of (other than in the case of the Registration Statement) the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any such amendment or supplement, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any Marketing Materials, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by you, or by any Underwriter through you, specifically for use in the preparation thereof; it being understood and agreed that the only information furnished by an Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 5(f).

(b)                                 Each Underwriter will, severally and not jointly, indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act and Section 20 of the Exchange Act (each and “Underwriter Indemnified Party”), from and against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which the Company may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise (including in settlement of any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, if such settlement is effected with the written consent of such Underwriter), insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in light of (other than in the case of the Registration Statement) the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus, or any such amendment or

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supplement, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by you, or by such Underwriter through you, specifically for use in the preparation thereof (it being understood and agreed that the only information furnished by an Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 5(f)), and will reimburse each Underwriter Indemnified Party for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such Underwriter Indemnified Party in connection with investigating or defending against any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred.

(c)                                  Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such subsection, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the commencement thereof; but the omission so to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve the indemnifying party from any liability that it may have to any indemnified party except to the extent such indemnifying party has been materially prejudiced by such failure (through the forfeiture of substantive rights or defenses).  In case any such action shall be brought against any indemnified party, and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate in, and, to the extent that it shall wish, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel satisfactory to such indemnified party, and after notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of the indemnifying party’s election so to assume the defense thereof, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party under such subsection for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by such indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation; provided, however, that the indemnified party shall have the right to employ counsel to represent jointly the indemnified party and those other indemnified parties and their respective directors, officers, employees and controlling persons who may be subject to liability arising from any claim in respect of which indemnity may be sought under this Section 5 if (i) the indemnified party and the indemnifying party shall have so mutually agreed; (ii) the indemnifying party has failed within a reasonable time to retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party; (iii) the indemnified party and its directors, officers, employees and controlling persons shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to them that are different from or in addition to those available to the indemnifying party; or (iv) the named parties in any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the indemnified parties or their respective directors, officers, employees or controlling persons, on the one hand, and the indemnifying party, on the other hand, and representation of both sets of parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them, and in any such event the reasonable fees and expenses of such separate counsel shall be paid by the indemnifying party.  An indemnifying party shall not be obligated under any settlement agreement relating to any action under this Section 5 to which it has not agreed in writing.  In addition, no indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed), effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party for all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding and does not include a statement as to, or an admission of, fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of an indemnified party.

(d)                                 If the indemnification provided for in this Section 5 is unavailable or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to in subsection (a) or (b) above, (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering of the Securities or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) above but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the

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other in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations.  The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering (after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions but before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus.  The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or the Underwriters and the parties’ relevant intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such untrue statement or omission.  The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this subsection (d) were to be determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in the first sentence of this subsection (d).  The amount paid by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to in the first sentence of this subsection (d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending against any action or claim which is the subject of this subsection (d).  Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (d), in no event shall an Underwriter be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriter with respect to the offering of the Securities exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations in this subsection (d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not joint.

(e)                                  The obligations of the Company under this Section 5 shall be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of the Securities Act; and the obligations of the Underwriters under this Section 5 shall be in addition to any liability that the respective Underwriters may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each director of the Company (including any person who, with his consent, is named in the Registration Statement as about to become a director of the Company), to each officer of the Company who has signed the Registration Statement and to each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act.

(f)                                   The Underwriters severally confirm and the Company acknowledges that the statements with respect to the public offering of the Securities by the Underwriters regarding set forth in the  fifth, fourteenth, fifteenth and eighteenth paragraphs under the caption “Underwriting” in the General Disclosure Package and in the Prospectus, are correct and constitute the only information concerning such Underwriters furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of the Underwriters specifically for inclusion in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the General Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus.

6.                                      Representations and Agreements to Survive Delivery. All representations, warranties, and agreements of the Company herein or in certificates delivered pursuant hereto, and the agreements of the several Underwriters and the Company contained in Section 5 hereof, shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or any controlling person thereof, or the Company or any of its officers, directors, or controlling persons thereof, and shall survive delivery of, and payment for, the Securities to and by the Underwriters hereunder.

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7.                                      Termination of this Agreement. You, as the Representative of the several Underwriters, shall have the right to terminate this Agreement by giving notice to the Company as hereinafter specified at any time at or prior to the First Closing Date, and the option referred to in Section 2(b), if exercised, may be cancelled at any time prior to the Second Closing Date, if (i) the Company shall have failed, refused or been unable, at or prior to such Closing Date, to perform any agreement on its part to be performed hereunder, (ii) any other condition of the Underwriters’ obligations hereunder is not fulfilled, (iii) trading on the NASDAQ Stock Market, the New York Stock Exchange or the NYSE MKT shall have been wholly suspended, (iv) minimum or maximum prices for trading shall have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices for securities shall have been required, on the NASDAQ Stock Market, the New York Stock Exchange or the NYSE MKT, by such Exchange or by order of the Commission or any other Governmental Authority, (v) a banking moratorium shall have been declared by federal or state authorities, or (vi) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis that, in your judgment, is material and adverse and makes it impractical or inadvisable to proceed with the completion of the sale of and payment for the Securities.  Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 3(h) and Section 5 hereof shall at all times be effective.

8.                                      Default of One of More of the Several Underwriters. If, on the First Closing Date or any Second Closing Date any one or more of the several Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Securities that it or they have agreed to purchase hereunder on such date, and the aggregate number of Securities which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase does not exceed 10% of the aggregate number of the Securities to be purchased on such date, the Representative may make arrangements satisfactory to the Company for the purchase of such Securities by other persons, including any of the Underwriters, but if no such arrangements are made by such date, the other Underwriters shall be obligated, severally and not jointly, in the proportions that the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names on Schedule I bears to the aggregate number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the names of all such non-defaulting Underwriters, or in such other proportions as may be specified by the Representative with the consent of the non-defaulting Underwriters, to purchase the Securities which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase on such date. If, on the First Closing Date or any Second Closing Date, any one or more of the Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Securities and the aggregate number of Securities with respect to which such default occurs exceeds 10% of the aggregate number of Securities to be purchased on such date, and arrangements satisfactory to the Representative and the Company for the purchase of such Securities are not made within 48 hours after such default, this Agreement shall terminate without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 3(h) and Section 5 shall at all times be effective and shall survive such termination. In any such case either the Representative or the Company shall have the right to postpone the applicable Closing Date, as the case may be, but in no event for longer than seven days in order that the required changes, if any, to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or any other documents or arrangements may be effected. No action taken pursuant to this section shall relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability, if any, in respect of such default. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” shall be deemed to include any person substituted for a defaulting Underwriter under this Section 8.

9.                                      Default by the Company.  If the Company shall fail at the First Closing Date to sell and deliver the number of Securities which it is obligated to sell hereunder, then this Agreement shall terminate without any liability on the part of any Underwriter or, except as provided in Section 3(h) and Section 5 hereof, any non-defaulting party.

No action taken pursuant to this Section 9 shall relieve the Company so defaulting from liability, if any, in respect of such default.

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10.                               Notices. Except as otherwise provided herein, all communications hereunder shall be in writing and, if to the Underwriter, shall be mailed or delivered to the Representative c/o Piper Jaffray & Co., U.S. Bancorp Center, 800 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402, Attention: General Counsel, with a copy to Dechert LLP, 1095 Avenue of Americas, New York, New York 10036, Attention:  David S. Rosenthal, Esq.;  and if to the Company, shall be mailed or delivered to Vericel Corporation, 64 Sidney Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, Attention: Chief Executive Officer, with a copy to Goodwin Procter LLP, 100 Northern Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02210, Fax:617-523-1231, Attention: Mitchell S. Bloom.  Any party to this Agreement may change such address for notices by sending to the parties to this Agreement written notice of a new address for such purpose.

11.                               Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement.  This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns and the controlling persons, officers and directors referred to in Section 5.  Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give to any other person, firm or corporation any legal or equitable remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained.  The term “successors and assigns” as herein used shall not include any purchaser, as such purchaser, of any of the Securities from any of the several Underwriters.

12.                               Absence of Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that: (a) the Representative has been retained solely to act as an underwriter in connection with the sale of the Securities and that no fiduciary, advisory or agency relationship between the Company and the Representative has been created in respect of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, irrespective of whether the Representative has advised or is advising the Company on other matters; (b) the price and other terms of the Securities set forth in this Agreement were established by the Company following discussions and arms-length negotiations with the Representative, and the Company is capable of evaluating and understanding and understands and accepts the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; (c) it has been advised that the Representative and their respective affiliates are engaged in a broad range of transactions which may involve interests that differ from those of the Company and that the Representative has no obligation to disclose such interest and transactions to the Company by virtue of any fiduciary, advisory or agency relationship; (d) it has been advised that the Representative is acting, in respect of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, solely for the benefit of the Representative and the other Underwriters, and not on behalf of the Company; (e) it, he or she waives to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims it may have against the Representative for breach of fiduciary duty or alleged breach of fiduciary duty in respect of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and agrees that the Representative shall have no liability (whether direct or indirect) to the Company in respect of such a fiduciary duty claim on behalf of or in right of the Company, including stockholders, employees or creditors of the Company.

13.                               Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

14.                               Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts and, if executed in more than one counterpart, the executed counterparts shall each be deemed to be an original and all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument.

15.                               General Provisions. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of the parties to this Agreement and supersedes all prior written or oral and all contemporaneous oral agreements, understandings and negotiations with respect to the subject matter hereof.  This Agreement may not be amended or modified unless in writing by all of the parties hereto, and no condition herein (express or implied) may be waived unless waived in writing by each party whom the condition is meant to benefit.

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The Section headings herein are for the convenience of the parties only and shall not affect the construction or interpretation of this Agreement.

[Signature Page Follows]

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Please sign and return to the Company the enclosed duplicates of this Agreement whereupon this Agreement will become binding between the Company and the Underwriters in accordance with its terms.

[Signature Page to Purchase Agreement]

SCHEDULE I

(1)                                 The Underwriters may purchase up to an additional 930,000 Option Shares, to the extent the option described in Section 2(b) of the Agreement is exercised, in the proportions and in the manner described in the Agreement.

SCHEDULE II

General Use Free Writing Prospectuses

None.

SCHEDULE III

Pricing Information

Number of Firm Shares to be Issued:   6,200,000

Number of Option Shares to be Issued:  930,000

Public Offering Price:   $2.75 per share

Underwriting Discounts and Commissions:  7.00%

EXHIBIT A

Form of Lock-Up Agreement

December [·], 2016

PIPER JAFFRAY & CO.

As representative of the underwriters named in

the Purchase Agreement referred to below

c/o       Piper Jaffray & Co.
800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 800
Minneapolis, MN 55402

Dear Sirs:

As an inducement to the underwriters (the “Underwriters”) to execute a purchase agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) providing for a public offering (the “Offering”) of shares of common stock, no par value per share (the “Common Stock”), of Vericel Corporation, a Michigan corporation, and any successor (by merger or otherwise) thereto (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby agrees that without, in each case, the prior written consent of Piper Jaffray & Co. (“Piper Jaffray”), as representative for the Underwriters, during the period specified in the second succeeding paragraph (the “Lock-Up Period”), the undersigned will not: (1) offer, pledge, announce the intention to sell, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, make any short sale or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any Common Stock or any securities convertible into, exercisable or exchangeable for or that represent the right to receive Common Stock (including without limitation, Common Stock which may be deemed to be beneficially owned by the undersigned in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and securities which may be issued upon exercise of a stock option or warrant) whether now owned or hereafter acquired (the “Undersigned’s Securities”); (2) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Undersigned’s Securities, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise; (3) make any demand for, or exercise any right with respect to, the registration of any Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock; or (4) publicly disclose the intention to do any of the foregoing.

The undersigned agrees that the foregoing restrictions preclude the undersigned from engaging in any hedging or other transaction which is designed to or which reasonably could be expected to lead to or result in a sale or disposition of the Undersigned’s Securities even if such Securities would be disposed of by someone other than the undersigned.  Such prohibited hedging or other transactions would include without limitation any short sale or any purchase, sale or grant of any right (including without limitation any put or call option) with respect to any of the Undersigned’s Securities or with respect to any security that includes, relates to, or derives any significant part of its value from such Securities.

The initial Lock-Up Period will commence on the date of this Agreement and continue up to and including the ninetieth (90th) day after the date of the final prospectus used to sell Common Stock in the Offering pursuant to the Purchase Agreement.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the undersigned may transfer the Undersigned’s Securities (i) as a bona fide gift or gifts, (ii) to any trust for the direct or indirect benefit of the undersigned or the immediate family of the undersigned, (iii) by testate succession or intestate succession, (iv) pursuant to the Purchase Agreement or (v) any transfers in connection with a bona fide third party tender offer, merger, consolidation or other similar transaction made to all common stock holders involving a change of control of the issuer, provided that in the event that the tender offer, merger, consolidation or other such transaction is not completed, the undersigned’s Common Stock shall remain subject to the restrictions contained herein; provided, in the case of clauses (i)-(iii), that (x) such transfer shall not involve a disposition for value, (y) the transferee agrees in writing with the Underwriters to be bound by the terms of this Agreement, and (z) no filing by any party under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act, shall be required or shall be made voluntarily in connection with such transfer. For purposes of this Agreement, “immediate family” shall mean any relationship by blood, marriage or adoption, not more remote than first cousin.

In addition, the foregoing restrictions shall not apply to (i) the exercise, conversion or exchange of any options, warrants, rights or convertible securities outstanding on the date hereof as described in the Registration Statement, including any exercise effected by the delivery or sale of the Undersigned’s Securities to the Company (including, without limitation, to finance a “cashless exercise”); provided that they shall apply to any of the Undersigned’s Securities issued upon such exercise, conversion or exchange, except to the extent such securities are withheld by the Company to cover tax liabilities; (ii) the establishment of any contract, instruction or plan (a “Plan”) that satisfies all of the requirements of Rule 10b5-1(c)(1)(i)(B) under the Exchange Act; provided that no sales of the Undersigned’s Securities shall be made pursuant to such a Plan prior to the expiration of the Lock-Up Period (as such may have been extended pursuant to the provisions hereof), and such a Plan may only be established if no public announcement of the establishment or existence thereof and no filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory authority in respect thereof or transactions thereunder or contemplated thereby, by the undersigned, the Company or any other person, shall be required, and no such announcement or filing is made voluntarily, by the undersigned, the Company or any other person, prior to the expiration of the Lock-Up Period (as such may have been extended pursuant to the provisions hereof); or (iii) transactions relating to Common Stock acquired in open market transactions after the completion of the Offering or Common Stock acquired in the Offering.

In furtherance of the foregoing, the Company and its transfer agent and registrar are hereby authorized to decline to make any transfer of Common Stock if such transfer would constitute a violation or breach of this Agreement.

The undersigned hereby represents and warrants that the undersigned has full power and authority to enter into this Agreement and that upon request, the undersigned will execute any additional documents necessary to ensure the validity or enforcement of this Agreement. All authority herein conferred or agreed to be conferred and any obligations of the undersigned shall be binding upon the successors, assigns, heirs or personal representatives of the undersigned.

The undersigned understands that the undersigned shall be released from all obligations under this Agreement if (i) the Company notifies the Underwriters that it does not intend to proceed

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with the Offering, (ii) the Purchase Agreement does not become effective, or the Purchase Agreement (other than the provisions thereof which survive termination) shall terminate or be terminated prior to payment for and delivery of the Common Stock to be sold thereunder, or (iii) the Offering is not completed by December 31, 2016.

The undersigned understands that the Underwriters are entering into the Purchase Agreement and proceeding with the Offering in reliance upon this Agreement.

[Signature Page Follows]

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This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

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Exhibit 5.1

December 16, 2016

Vericel Corporation
64 Sidney Street
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

Re:                             Vericel Corporation Registration Statement on Form S-3 (the “Registration Statement”)

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen:

We have acted as special counsel for Vericel Corporation, a Michigan corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the offer and sale (the “Offering”) by the Company of 6,200,000 shares (the “Shares”) of the Company’s common stock, without par value (the “Common Stock”), pursuant to (a) a Registration Statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-205336) (the “Registration Statement”) filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), which was declared effective by the Commission on July 15, 2015; (b) the prospectus of the Company dated June 29, 2015 (the “Base Prospectus”) as filed with the Commission; and (c) the prospectus supplement of the Company, dated December 16, 2015, 2016, as filed with the Commission (the “Prospectus Supplement”).

In rendering the opinions set forth below, we have examined and relied upon the Purchase Agreement, dated the date hereof, between the Company and Piper Jaffray & Co., as representative of the several Underwriters named in Schedule I thereto (the “Purchase Agreement”), and have examined the Registration Statement (including the exhibits thereto), the originals or copies, certified or otherwise identified to our satisfaction, of the restated articles of incorporation (“Restated Articles of Incorporation”) and the bylaws (the “Bylaws”) of the Company as amended to date, resolutions adopted by the Company’s Board of Directors, and such other documents, corporate records, and instruments, and such laws and regulations, relating to the Company and the issuance and sale of the Shares as we have deemed necessary for purposes of rendering the opinions set forth herein.  We have also relied as to certain matters on information obtained from public officials.

In our examination, we have assumed the legal capacity of all natural persons, the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of original documents and the conformity to original documents of all photostatic and facsimile copies submitted to us, and the due execution

California | Illinois | Michigan | Minnesota | Texas | Washington, D.C.

and delivery of all documents by any party where due execution and delivery are a prerequisite to the effectiveness thereof.  We have also assumed that all information contained in all documents reviewed by us is true and correct.  We have further assumed without independent investigation that, at the time any Shares are sold pursuant to the Registration Statement and the Purchase Agreement:

(i)            the Registration Statement, and any supplements and amendments thereto (including post-effective amendments) will be effective and comply with all applicable laws;

(ii)           all corporate or other action required to be taken by the Company to duly authorize each proposed issuance of Shares and any related documentation shall remain in full force and effect;

(iii)          the Purchase Agreement shall remain in full force and effect;

(iv)          the Company will be validly incorporated, validly in existence, and in good standing under Michigan law; and

(v)           all Shares will be issued and sold in compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and in the manner stated in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus Supplement.

As to any facts material to the opinion expressed herein that were not independently established or verified, we have relied upon statements and representations of officers and other representatives of the Company.  In addition, we have assumed that the certificates representing the Shares will be duly executed and delivered by the duly authorized officers of the Company in accordance with the Bylaws and applicable law, or the Shares will be issued in uncertificated form in compliance with applicable law and the Company’s Bylaws.

Based upon such examination and subject to the further provisions hereof, we are of the opinion that, upon issuance, delivery and payment therefor in accordance with the terms of the Purchase Agreement and the Prospectus Supplement, the Shares will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.

The foregoing opinions are limited to the laws of the state of Michigan.  We express no opinion and make no representation with respect to the law of any other jurisdictions.  We are opining only as to the matters expressly set forth herein, and no opinion should be inferred as to any other matters. This opinion is based upon currently existing statutes, rules, regulations and judicial decisions, and we disclaim any obligation to update this opinion or otherwise advise you of any change in any of these sources of law or subsequent legal or factual developments which might affect any matters or opinions set forth herein.

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We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion, in accordance with the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K under the Act with the Commission, as an exhibit to the Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed by the Company in connection with the Offering and to the use of our name as the Company’s counsel under “Legal Matters” in the Registration Statement (including the Base Prospectus and the Prospectus Supplement which are a part thereof), and in any amendment or supplement thereto.  In giving such consent, we do not admit that we are within the categories of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Act or the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder.

Sincerely,

DYKEMA GOSSETT PLLC

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Exhibit 99.1

Vericel Corporation Prices $17 Million Public Offering of Common Stock

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., December 16, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL), a leading developer of expanded autologous cell therapies for the treatment of patients with serious diseases and conditions, today announced the pricing of its previously announced underwritten public offering of 6,200,000 shares of its common stock, offered at a price to the public of $2.75 per share. The gross proceeds to Vericel from this offering are expected to be approximately $17 million, before deducting the underwriting discount and other estimated offering expenses payable by Vericel. Vericel has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase at the public offering price up to an aggregate of 930,000 additional shares of its common stock to cover over-allotments, if any. The offering is expected to close on or about December 21, 2016, subject to customary closing conditions. Vericel anticipates using the proceeds from the offering to support the commercialization of MACI, expand promotional efforts for Epicel, expand and optimize manufacturing and for other general corporate purposes.

Piper Jaffray & Co. is acting as the sole manager for the offering.

The offering is being made pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 that was filed with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) on June 29, 2015 and declared effective by the SEC on July 15, 2015.  The offering is being made only by means of a written prospectus and prospectus supplement that form a part of the registration statement. A preliminary prospectus supplement has been filed with the SEC and a final prospectus supplement for the offering will be filed with the SEC and will be available on the SEC’s website located at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the final prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the offering, when available, may be obtained by contacting Piper Jaffray & Co., Attention: Prospectus Department, 800 Nicollet Mall, J12S03, Minneapolis, MN 55402, by telephone: (800) 747-3924 or by email: prospectus@pjc.com.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any of these securities, nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is not permitted.

About Vericel Corporation

Vericel develops, manufactures, and markets expanded autologous cell therapies for the treatment of patients with serious diseases and conditions.  The company currently markets two cell therapy products in the United States.  Carticel® (autologous cultured chondrocytes) is an autologous chondrocyte implant for the treatment of cartilage defects in the knee in patients who have had an inadequate response to a prior arthroscopic or other surgical repair procedure.  Epicel® (cultured epidermal autografts) is a permanent skin replacement for the treatment of patients with deep dermal or full thickness burns greater than or equal to 30% of total body

surface area.  Vericel also plans to market MACI® (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane), an autologous cellularized scaffold product indicated for the repair of symptomatic, single or multiple full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee with or without bone involvement in adults, which was recently approved by the FDA.  Vericel is also developing ixmyelocel-T, an autologous multicellular therapy intended to treat advanced heart failure due to ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements,” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, regarding, among other things, the proposed public offering of Vericel’s common stock. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties, including factors that could delay, divert or change any of them, and could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in its forward-looking statements. Meaningful factors which could cause actual results to differ, including, the satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the proposed public offering, as well as other factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” sections of Vericel’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 and Vericel’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2016, which are on file with the SEC and available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. In addition to the risks described above and in Vericel’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the SEC, other unknown or unpredictable factors also could affect Vericel’s results. There can be no assurance that the actual results or developments anticipated by Vericel will be realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on Vericel. Therefore, no assurance can be given that the outcomes stated in such forward-looking statements and estimates will be achieved.

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