Pain treatment maker TorreyPines saved by Raptor merger
TorreyPines Therapeutics, maker of pain management medication, has skirted failure through a $1.4 million merger deal with Raptor Therapeutics. The deal dictates that Raptor will become a full subsidiary of TorreyPines, which is publicly traded on the Nasdaq, but the new entity will take on the Raptor name, reports VentureWire.
Raptor will continue to advance its product pipeline, which includes treatments for Huntington’s disease. TorreyPines will do the same, continuing development on its lead drug candidates… Continue Reading
CoreOptics raises $25M for optical networking systems
CoreOptics designs 10/40/100 Gbps optical networking subsystems for tier-1 networks. Along with sales of optical fiber, the company also makes signal processing technology aimed at lowering error rates in transmission.
Founded in 2001, CoreOptics has taken over $90 million to date. The company is co-based in Nuremberg, Germany and Manchester, New Hampshire, with additional offices in San Jose, Calif.
The source of the the $25 million funding was not disclosed, but CoreOptic’s past backers include T-Com Venture… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Fovea Pharma sees €30M for eye drugs (release)
Ascendis Pharma raises €18M for time-release drugs (PDF release)
Arcion draws $9M for topical pain drugs (VentureWire, sub req’d)
Saladax Biomedical raises $8M for chemotherapy diagnostics (VW)
MedAssets prices IPO at top of range, raises up to $221M (IPO Home)
Pequot spin-off Longitude seeks $250M for life-science investments (VW)
Third Rock Ventures adds three new partners (release)
Ultrasound surgical co. ProRhythm files for bankruptcy protection (release)
The Hartford Financial Services Group acquires healthcare-benefit administrator… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007
Featured companies: Advanced Bio-Surfaces, Ambit Biosciences, EnteroMedics, Molecular Vision, Skyline Ventures
UPDATED: Expanded items on Skyline Ventures, Ambit, and Molecular Vision, and moved EnteroMedics to a new item here.
Skyline Ventures raises $350M life-sciences fund — Skyline Ventures, a Palo Alto, Calif., VC firm, closed a $350 million fund for healthcare and life-sciences investments. The fund is Skyline’s fifth.
Skyline is unquestionably coming off a hot streak. As it notes in its release, three of its portfolio companies were acquired… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007
(UPDATED at 6:40pm PT: See below.)
Featured companies: Nereus Phramaceuticals, KFx Medical, NeuroMed Pharmaceuticals, Adnexus Therapeutics, Masimo, Biofisica, Aegera Therapeutics, LymphoSign, InfuScience, Palmetto Infusion Services
Nereus Pharma raises $45M for ocean-derived cancer drugs — San Diego’s Nereus Pharmaceuticals, a biotech that searches for cancer drugs in marine microbes, raised $45 million in a follow-on to its fourth funding round.
The company features an all-star lineup of investors, which includes BankInvest, Roche Venture Fund, Astellas Venture Management, Boston Life Science Venture… Continue Reading
CoWare, provider of EDA software, raises $7M of planned $14M
CoWare, a San Jose, Calif. provider of EDA software and services, has secured $7 million of a $14 million Series fifth round, according to a regulatory filing cited by PE Wire. Backers include Greylock Partners, GIMV, Cadence Design Systems and IT Partners (Belgium).
ChemoCentryx, autoimmune disease drug co., raises $29.84M
ChemoCentryx, a Mountain View, Calif. developer of oral drugs for autoimmune diseases, inflammatory diseases and oncology, has raised $29.84 million in forth round of funding, according to a regulatory filing cited by PE Week. Glaxo Group Ltd. was joined by existing investors, including Alta Partners, GIMV, HBM BioVentures and OrbiMed Advisors.