VC investing rebounds in Q2, still at mid-1990s levels
Venture capital investment activity rebounded to $3.7 billion in the second quarter, but the gains are only enough to put the sector on track to match annual levels from more than 12 years ago.
While the change in direction is reassuring, it may be a dead-cat bounce after the first-quarter’s precipitous 40 percent drop in venture capital activity. We argued then that the goldrush era of technology prospecting may be over, as Silicon Valley has to… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Friday, April 11, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Stent maker IDev Tech raises $25M (VentureWire)
Xytis gets $15M for brain-injury drugs (VentureWire)
Diagnostic maker Iris Biotech plans to go public, launch breast-cancer test (Edgar)
RiverVest Venture Partners raises $75M life-science fund (release)
Concentric Medical names Maria Sainz CEO (release)
[Note: I’m a little sad to announce that this will be my last life-science briefing at VentureBeat, although with luck, it won’t be the end of my time here. Starting Monday, I’ll be blogging regularly on the drug industry and… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Wednesday, April 9, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Stemline Therapeutics, cancer stem-cell startup, gets $13M (release)
Eye-disease biotech Potentia Pharma raises $12M (release)
Sample-prep toolmaker Arcxis aims for $8M to $10M (VentureWire)
Synvascular names Drew Hoffman as CEO (VentureWire)
ArtusLabs gets $2.6M for life-science software and services (release)
Cancer-drug maker Inotek loses CEO, Genentech partnership (release)
GTESS, health-plan IT startup, names James Bradley CEO (release)
Antibiotic developer Tetraphase Pharma names Guy MacDonald CEO (release)
Stemline Therapeutics, cancer stem-cell startup, gets $13M – New York-based Stemline Therapeutics, a biotech focused on new… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Tuesday, April 8, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
AGI Dermatics takes in $5M for skincare products (release)
Myconostica raises £3.9 for fungal diagnostics (GenomeWeb)
Germany’s Noxxon gets €1M grant for aptamer drugs (release)
AGI Dermatics takes in $5M for skincare products – Freeport, N.Y.-based AGI Dermatics, a startup concentrated on skincare products, raised $5 million in a new funding round. Investors included Trevi Health Ventures and Spring Mountain Capital.
AGI makes cosmetic ingredients and is working on developing topical pharmaceutical lotions as well. Its leading drug candidate… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Monday, April 7, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Quark Pharma gets $27M for RNAi drugs (release)
TargetRx takes in $9.6M for physician-prescribing data (release)
D-Pharm raises more than $3M for fat-like drugs (release)
Vortex Medical raises $2.3M for medical devices (VentureWire)
Specialty pharma Ascio takes in $3M (VentureWire)
Keraderm gets $1.7M for antifungal drugs (VentureWire)
Contract researcher CTMG raises $500K toward $1M round (VentureWire)
Singapore’s Progeniq raises seed funding for life-science computing (release)
Acrongenomics scuttles Molecular Vision acquisition (peHUB)
Michael Gutch joins H.I.G. Ventures (release)
Quark Pharma gets $27M for RNAi drugs – Fremont, Calif.-based Quark Pharmaceuticals,… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Friday, April 4, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
IlluminOss Medical gets $11M for bone-fracture devices (peHUB)
Contract researcher Crown Bioscience takes in funding (release)
IlluminOss Medical gets $11M for bone-fracture devices — East Providence, R.I.-based IlluminOss Medical, a medical-device startup, raised $11 million in a second funding round, peHUB reports. Backers included New Leaf Ventures and Foundation Medical Partners.
The company’s Web site is barely more than a stub that describes IlluminOss as a device company “pioneering new frontiers in orthopedic surgery.” peHUB offers the… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Thursday, April 3, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Mirna Thera spins out of Asuragen with $3M (release)
Stroke-therapy startup CoAxia raises $12M (release)
Stealthy device maker Synvascular gets $6.5M (peHUB)
AndroScience seeks $3.5M for anti-testosterone drugs (VentureWire)
Austria’s ProtAffin takes in €1.1M grant (release)
Singapore’s Moleac receives $3.5M for Chinese medicine (release)
Alethia Bio gets C$2.4M for antibody drugs (release)
Alba Thera names Bruce Peacock as CEO (release)
SkinMedica names Mary Fisher as CEO (release)
Mirna Thera spins out of Asuragen with $3M – Mirna Therapeutics, a newly minted Austin, Tex., startup focused… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Wednesday, April 2, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
ProGenTech takes in $21M for DNA purification systems (release)
Diabetes-drug maker Phenomix raises $18M while seeking IPO (Edgar)
Genome-tool maker BioTrove gets $23M in preparation for IPO (Edgar)
Sweden’s DermaGen pulls in more than €1M for dermatitis (release)
Digital health-record co. Medsphere receives $3M bridge (VentureWire)
CareAnyware, healthcare IT provider, takes $2M in debt (release)
Health B2B community CompareNetworks raises funding (release)
ActivBiotics assets sold for $3.5M (release)
ProGenTech takes in $21M for DNA purification systems – ProGenTech, an “East-West” tool and equipment maker,… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Friday, March 28, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
VaxGen, Raven Bio terminate merger agreement (release)
Aerovance gets $20M in venture debt for respiratory disease (release)
EKOS raises $5M for ultrasound catheters (peHUB)
Intelligent Bio-Systems draws $353K for high-speed genome sequencing (peHUB)
Quintessence Bio takes in $5M for cancer-directed proteins (VentureWire)
7 Health Ventures adds three members to investment team (release)
Contract manufacturer Cytovance names Darren Head CEO (release)
VaxGen, Raven Bio terminate merger agreement – A weirdly structured, always hard-to-understand merger between the failed vaccine biotech VaxGen and startup Raven Biotechnologies… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Thursday, March 27, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Breathe Tech raises $15M for respiratory disease (release)
Protein-drug maker Pieris takes in €25M (release)
Apthera takes in $2.1M toward cancer vaccine (VentureWire)
Breathe Tech raises $15M for respiratory disease – Breathe Technologies, a Fremont, Calif., medical device maker, raised $15 million in a second round of funding. Investors included Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Synergy Partners International, Delphi Ventures and Life Science Angels.
Breathe is developing “compact” and “lightweight” respiratory systems for the hospital and home markets, and… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Tuesday, March 25, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Antibody-discovery startup Adimab raises new funding (release)
Lung-device maker Spiration gets $19M (release)
Sample-prep startup Protein Discovery pulls in $10M (release)
Inogen takes in $13M for portable oxygen device (VentureWire)
Healthcare IT concern Medaptus raises $11M for expansion (VentureWire)
Contract lab Synexis raises $14M (peHUB)
Medical-device VC firm BioStar Ventures takes in $24M of $80M fund (peHUB)
Halsa Pharma gets $250K for “natural” obesity-control treatment (release)
Diagnostics provider Lab21 acquires NPTech (peHUB)
Galil Medical names Martin Emerson CEO (release)
Antibody-discovery startup Adimab raises new funding – Lebanon,… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Wednesday, March 19, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Paris-based Stentys takes $18M for “bifurcated” stents (release)
Blood analyzer IntelliDx raises $22M (PDF release)
Cancer-test biotech Calderome changes name to VeraCyte (VentureWire)
Predictive Biosciences names Peter Klemm as CEO (release)
Paris-based Stentys takes $18M for “bifurcated” stents – Stentys, a Paris-based medical device maker, raised $18 million in a second funding round. The company is developing “bifurcated” stents intended to prop open clogged arteries at blood-vessel junctions.
The startup said the funding will allow it to complete clinical trials… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Tuesday, March 18, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Luminous Medical raises $24M for automated glucose monitoring (release)
Alimera Sciences gets $30M for eye-disease drug (release)
Vaccine maker LigoCyte draws $28M (release)
Heartbeat tracker CardioNet trims IPO, aims for listing today (IPOhome)
Axial Biotech takes in $6M for spinal diagnostics (release)
Insulin bioengineer enGene receives $6.4M (release)
GlucoLight raises funding for, well, glucose monitoring (release)
Germany’s InflaRx gets seed funding for sepsis work (release)
Cell imager Amnis pulls in $3.5M (VentureWire)
Korea Bone Bank gets funding for bone transplants (release)
Luminous Medical raises… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Monday, March 17, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Defibrillator maker Cameron Health takes in $14M (VBLS exclusive)
Miramar Labs gets $20M for “aesthetic” devices (VBLS exclusive)
Nellix raises $6.5M for aneurysm grafts (VBLS exclusive)
Vessel-clog remover Chestnut Medical pulls in $7.8M (VBLS exclusive)
Consumer genetics tester DNA Direct receives $7M (PDF release)
Precision Thera again prowling for venture funding (VentureWire)
Cancer-drug maker ChimeraCore raises $4.3M (VentureWire)
Kai Sensors pulls in $2.2M for radar-based sensors (VentureWire)
ProNAi raises $6M for DNA drugs, seeks $20M more (VentureWire)
(NOTE: Items on Cameron Health, Miramar Labs, Nellix and… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Friday, March 14, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES
Cantimer takes in $2M for dehydration diagnostics (VentureWire)
Recodagen launches, takes aim at cancer (release)
Juniper Diagnostics spins out of ChemSensing (VentureWire)
Cantimer takes in $2M for dehydration diagnostics –The mystery of Menlo Park, Calif.-based Cantimer has resolved a bit. We wrote about this stealthy company back in December and reached the conclusion that the company was developing a particular type of nanosensor intended to identify water levels in human tissue.
Now VentureWire reports that Cantimer is doing… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Tuesday, March 11, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Affinergy gets $3M in grants for biological “linkers” (release)
Specialty pharma EUSA raises $50M, spends $23M for public biotech Cytogen (release)
Calderome takes in $12M for cancer diagnostics (peHUB)
Pulse Health raises $2M for handheld free-radical device (release)
LifeMasters takes in $15M for wellness, disease-management programs (release)
Dubai Techno Park launched $300MVC fund for life sciences, other sectors (release)
Affinergy gets $3M in grants for biological “linkers” – Affinergy, a Duke University spinout in Research Triangle Park, N.C., received grants worth more… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Monday, March 10, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
BrainCells raises $30M for neuroregeneration drugs (release)
EKR Therapeutics takes in $50M plus $95M in debt for pain, heart drugs (release)
Wright Medical acquires Berkeley’s Inbone Tech for $24M (release)
Argolyn Bioscience names Nixon Ellis as CEO (release)
BrainCells raises $30M for neuroregeneration drugs – San Diego’s BrainCells, a startup focused on drugs intended to stimulate the growth of new neurons, raised $30 million in a second funding round. Investors included MedImmune Ventures, Bay City Capital, Oxford Bioscience Partners,… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Friday, March 7, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Allegro pulls in $4M for lung-cancer molecular diagnostics (release)
Ocular bandage developer I-Therapeutix raises $6M (Mass High Tech)
NanoBio gets last of $30M for skin-infection drugs (release)
Cayenne Medical raises $15M for sports medicine (release)
Aridis Pharma seeks $10M for oral-form drugs and vaccines (VentureWire)
Neurosurgical device maker Nfocus Neuro acquires StarFire Medical (release)
Allegro pulls in $4M for lung-cancer molecular diagnostics – Boston’s Allegro Diagnostics, a biotech developing molecular diagnostics for lung cancer, raised $4 million in a first funding… Continue Reading
Life-science briefing: Thursday, March 6, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
France’s TxCell raises €11M for cell therapy (release)
Healthcare IT firm TriHealix takes in $7M (release)
Healthcare-software provider Anodyne Health acquires Piedmont Healthcare (release)
CEO, CFO resign at inhaled-drug biotech Topigen (release)
France’s TxCell raises €11M for cell therapy – TxCell, a French cell-therapy biotech, raised €10.5 million ($16 million) in a second funding round. Investors included Auriga Partners, AXA Private Equity, Bioam Gestion, CDC Innovation and Seventure.
The biotech is developing a patient-specific cell therapy for the gastrointestinal autoimmune… Continue Reading
Precision Thera merger with “blank check” firm Oracle Healthcare collapses
(UPDATED: See below.)
Another one bites the dust.
The saga of Precision Therapeutics, a Pittsburgh biotech developing what struck me last August as a particularly crude type of cancer-chemotherapy diagnostic, continues apace. In a tersely worded press release, the special-purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, Oracle Healthcare Acquisition said it has terminated its planned merger with Precision. The release blamed “currently prevailing market conditions” for the decision, which carries some fairly ominous consequences for both sides.
Oracle’s plight is fairly… Continue Reading