Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2007

Featured companies: Aryx Therapeutics, BioForm Medical, Health Market Science, Hypobaric Therapeutics, Mobile Medical International

UPDATED: Expanded items on BioForm, Aryx, Hypobaric and Mobile Medical.

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Medical aethetics co. BioForm Medical prices IPO below range, raises up to $92M — BioForm Medical, a wrinkle-treatment maker based in San Mateo, Calif., priced its IPO below its expected range of $9 to $11 a share, reducing its maximum take from the offering to $92 million from $127 million. (See our earlier coverage here and here.) The company priced the offering at $8 a share, although investors pushed up the price 55 cents, or 6.89 percent, in subsequent regular trading.

BioForm makes a wrinkle-fill product called Radiesse, which the FDA approved last December. The offering values the company at $356.8 million. See BioForm’s latest pre-offering SEC filing here.

Aryx discounts IPO price, raises up to $58M for safer drugs — Aryx Therapeutics, a Fremont, Calif., specialty pharma focused on producing safer versions of existing drugs, discounted its IPO price to $10 a share, considerably lower than its estimated $14 to $16 range. The offering stands to raise a maximum of $57.5 million, a far cry from the $92 million the company expected just about two weeks ago. (See our coverage here.)

The offering values Aryx at $175.4 million. The company’s shares dropped 19 percent, or $1.90, in their first day of trading.

Hypobaric Therapeutics raises $7.5M for dialysis device — Carmel, Calif.-based Hypobaric Therapeutics raised $7.5 million from management and individual investors, VentureWire reports (subscription required). The medical-device maker is developing a less-invasive process for kidney dialysis, although it hasn’t disclosed much about its approach. Hypobaric’s management says it is still investigating the feasibility of its approach in animal studies.

Mobile Medical raises $3.5M for mobile surgery units — Mobile Medical International, a St. Johnsbury, Vt., maker of mobile surgery systems, raised $3.5 million in a first funding round, VentureWire reports. Brook Venture Partners provided the funding.

Mobile Medical makes mobile-surgery units for the military, hospitals and other government agencies. The funding will be used to expand sales and marketing.

OTHER HEADLINES OF NOTE:

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• Mobile Medical raises $3.5M for mobile surgery units (VW)