VentureBeat

Wilmington, Mass.-based ONI Medical Systems, a developer of new magnetic-resonance imaging systems, raised $12.5 million in a third funding round. Ziegler Meditech Equity Partners led the round, joined by private-equity firms Galen Partners and Ivy Capital Partners.

ONI makes “anatomy-specific” MRI systems designed to scan particular parts of the body, such as the legs or arms. Traditional MRIs are huge hollow tubes that scan the patient’s entire body, an experience that requires the individual to lie perfectly still and which can induce claustrophobia.

Gentis, a Philadelphia developer of an injectable spinal implant, raised $10 million in a first round of funding. Pappas Ventures and Easton Capital led the round, joined by Ivy Capital Partners and Matignon Technologies.

The company is at work on an implant designed to restore function to a degenerated spinal disk by bolstering or replacing the gel-like tissue at its center. The implant, called DiscCell, can be injected into the disk, where it hardens in place. The implant hasn’t yet been tested in humans; Gentis said the funding will allow it to complete animal testing and a pilot clinical trial prior to filing with the FDA for a “pivotal” clinical study.