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.