Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2007

Featured companies: Algorithme Pharma, Bacchus Vascular, Botaneco, Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Ikonisys, Healthcare Management Systems, Illumigen Biosciences, Kilmer Capital Partners, Medical Specialties Distributors, Metastatix, Microphage, Orthosoft, Thomas McNerney & Partners, TranS1, TriReme Medical, Wren Medical, Zimmer

UPDATE: Expanded TriReme Medical, Ikonisys and TranS1 items.

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UPDATE REDUX: Added MicroPhage item.

Stent-maker TriReme Medical sails off with $15.6M — Pleasanton, Calif.-based TriReme Medical, a device maker developing a new type of artery-opening stent for blood-vessel junctions, raised $15.6 million in a third funding round. (The company doesn’t appear to have a Web site.) Investors included Three Arch Partners and Adams Street Partners.

TriReme claims that its new stent is easier to use and can be placed more accurately than similar stents now on the market. The product is still undergoing clinical studies.

Ikonisys draws $30M for cancer and prenatal diagnostics — New Haven, Conn.-based Ikonisys, which now makes and sells a cell-based diagnostic for cancer and prenatal testing, raised $30 million in a fifth funding round. Investors included Goldman, Sachs, Trevi Health Ventures, Palisade Capital, Everfin, Lakeview Capital Management, New Science Ventures, Promark Holdings, Saint Simeon – e Investimentos, and WHI Group.

Ikonisys makes an automated microscope-based test that analyzes cells from blood and other bodily fluids. The system can chunk through up to 175 microscope slides in one go, providing an initial diagnosis for each one based on a computer analysis of stained cell samples. The company has received FDA approval to market the test for detection of bladder cancer and to scan for prenatal chromosomal defects.

TranS1 IPO exceeds estimated range, raises $95M for spinal-fusion devices — The Wilmington, N.C., maker of minimally invasive devices for spinal fusion priced its IPO shares at $15 apiece, above its expected range of $12 to $14, raising as much as $95 million on the sale of up to 6.3 million shares. The offering values the company at $281.6 million. Our previous coverage of the firm is here and here.

In early trading Wednesday, TranS1 shares were up 60 percent to $24. That’s more confirmation — as if we needed it — that life-science investors seem excited about everything except biotech.

Infection-diagnostic co. MicroPhage raises $1.6M — Antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus infections are on the rise, boosting the need for ways to detect the bugs at an early stage so as to prevent their spread and treat patients most effectively. MicroPhage, a Longmont, Colo., biotech at work on a diagnostic test of this sort, raised $1.6 million in a second tranch of its first funding round. Private investors provided the funding.

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MicroPhage isn’t alone in this market, of course. We wrote earlier about OpGen and AdvanDX — see our coverage here and here — which hope to speed detection of these “superbugs” (technically known as MRSA, for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) using new genome-based tests. MicroPhage, however, takes an ingenious and decidedly low-tech approach: Its tests are designed to detect MRSA by infecting the staph germs with bacteria-specific viruses called bacteriophage. These viruses multiply so rapidly that they should be detectable by simple antibody tests within one to four hours, a solution the company bills as simple and inexpensive compared to its high-tech counterparts.

OTHER HEADLINES OF NOTE:

• Botaneco takes in $2.4M for dermatology emulsions, split from SemBioSys Genetics (release)
• Marval Bio raises $1M for less toxic contrast dye for CT scans (VentureWire, sub req’d)
• 7 Health Ventures raises $70M for Israeli medical-device startups (VentureWire)
• Zimmer completes acquisition of OrthoSoft for $51.4M (Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette)
• Cubist buys “exclusive option” to acquire anti-infective developer Illumigen (release)
• Medical Specialties Distributors acquires infusion-product distributor Wren Medical (PE Hub)
• Kilmer takes majority stake in contract researcher Algorithme Pharma (PE Hub)
• Healthcare IT firm Healthcare Management raises funds, recapitalizes (release)
• Clotbuster-device co. Bacchus Vascular names Scott Cramer CEO (release)
• Chemokine specialist Metastatix names Carol Gallagher as CEO (release)
• Thomas, McNerney & Partners names Eric Aguiar partner, Jason Brown as associate (release)