• Tryton Medical

  Participated · Equity · Jan 2013

  Tryton Medical is the leading developer of stents designed to treat coronary bifurcation lesions. Its core product, the Tryton Side Branch Stent System, uses proprietary Tri‑ZONE® technology and a cobalt‑chromium design deployed in the side branch via a standard single‑wire balloon‑expandable delivery system while a conventional drug‑eluting stent is placed in the main vessel. The Tryton Side Branch Stent has been used to treat more than 10,000 patients worldwide, is commercially available in multiple countries across Europe, the Middle East & Africa, is investigational in the U.S., and is not available in Japan. Tryton is pursuing U.S. market clearance through the Pivotal IDE Trial and the Tryton IDE Extended Access Registry, with results from both intended for submission to the FDA. The company plans to develop the left main market opportunity based on a CE approved left main stent indication for its Tryton Side Branch Stent. Tryton completed an initial closing of a $20 million private equity financing to support registry enrollment, the FDA submission, and left main market development. Tryton Medical develops stent systems to treat coronary bifurcation lesions using its proprietary Tri-zone technology. Its cobalt chromium stent is deployed in the side branch with a standard single-wire balloon-expandable delivery system, after which a conventional drug-eluting stent is placed in the main vessel. The stent system has received CE Mark and is commercially available across Europe, Russia and the Middle East, while in the United States it is approved for investigational use only. The company, founded in 2003 and led by president and CEO Shawn P. McCarthy, intends to support a U.S. FDA submission this year and to expand its platform with a new stent system targeting left main disease. Tryton also plans to accelerate access into critical global markets, specifically in Asia. It recently held an initial closing of an aggregate $24M financing to support those plans. Tryton Medical, located in Durham, NC, develops novel stent systems for the treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions. Its Tryton Side Branch Stent System has CE Mark approval in Europe and has been implanted in more than 2,500 patients. The company was founded in 2003 by Aaron V. Kaplan, M.D., and Dan Cole. Tryton is privately held and venture-backed by Arnerich Massena & Associates, Spray Ventures, PTV Sciences, and RiverVest Ventures. Square 1 Bank has extended a $5 million term loan credit facility to the company. With the new facility, Tryton is enrolling in a pivotal U.S. clinical trial to advance its device toward broader market access. Tryton Medical develops the Tryton Side Branch Stent System, a dedicated strategy for treating atherosclerotic lesions in the side branch at coronary bifurcations. The system has shown excellent six-month clinical and angiographic results in a first-in-man study and similarly strong six-month clinical outcomes from nearly 200 patients across four registries, with a target lesion revascularization rate under 4%. The device has received CE Mark approval and is commercially available in 21 countries across Europe and the Middle East. It is not approved for use in the United States. The company plans to use new financing to conduct a U.S. pivotal trial and to drive broader international product adoption. Tryton is based in Durham, North Carolina.

• PneumRx

  Participated · Equity · Jan 2011

  PneumRx is a Mountain View, California-based medical device company focused on development and commercialization of minimally invasive products to treat emphysema. Its core product is the PneumRx RePneu Lung Volume Reduction Coil (LVRC) System, which bronchoscopically implants Nitinol coils to compress damaged tissue and restore elastic recoil. The company has begun selling the RePneu LVRC System in Europe and recently established a subsidiary, PneumRx GmbH, in Germany. PneumRx intends to use the funds to support European sales and to begin a pivotal clinical trial to support a PMA application in early 2011. It plans to submit trial results to enable sales of the RePneu LVRC System in the United States. The company raised $33m in capital in the reported financing to fund these efforts. PneumRx develops diagnostic and therapeutic medical devices for lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema). Its core products include PneuSeal, an adhesive sealant currently in clinical trials in Germany to evaluate safety and effectiveness for reducing pneumothorax complications after lung biopsy. The company is also developing a minimally invasive lung volume reduction device for emphysema that it says has demonstrated quantitative improvements in lung function. PneumRx plans to commence clinical trials on the lung-volume-reduction device later this year. The company raised $27 million in a Series B to complete clinical trials and prepare for commercialization of these two major devices. Investors in the round included Adams Street Partners, Telegraph Hill Partners, Sage Venture Partners and existing backers such as Alta Partners, KBL Healthcare Ventures and Spray Venture Partners.

• TearScience

  Participated · Series C · May 2010

  TearScience develops integrated in-office systems to identify and treat evaporative dry eye and is headquartered in Morrisville, North Carolina. Its product suite includes the LipiView Ocular Surface Interferometer, which measures the lipid layer thickness of the tear film, and the LipiFlow Thermal Pulsation System, which unblocks Meibomian glands during an in-office procedure. In its first year after product launch TearScience sold more than 100 systems and treated thousands of dry eye sufferers, demonstrating early commercial traction. The company targets the worldwide dry eye market (more than 100 million sufferers globally and roughly 23 million in the U.S.), noting that about 86% of cases are evaporative dry eye. TearScience aims to fully execute global commercialization efforts and establish its system as the standard of care for evaporative dry eye by addressing the root cause—Meibomian Gland Dysfunction—and restoring natural lipid production for a healthy tear film. TearScience is a medical device company that develops devices used by eye care professionals to diagnose and treat the most common form of chronic dry eye disease. The company has achieved CE Mark certification to market its devices in Europe and is currently seeking U.S. FDA clearance. Products are expected to be commercially available within the next 12 months. TearScience completed a $44.5M Series C financing to support commercialization. The funding will allow the company to commercialize its devices. The company is based in Morrisville, North Carolina.

• Direct Flow Medical

  Participated · Equity · Oct 2007

  Direct Flow Medical is an emerging medical device company focused on the Direct Flow Medical Transcatheter Aortic Valve System, a metal-free valve that uses a polymer frame. The system is expanded with saline/contrast for assessment and repositioning, then locked in place with a quick-curing polymer; its double-ring design creates a tight seal and the valve is fully repositionable and retrievable up until polymer exchange. The low-profile, fully sheathed delivery system avoids rapid pacing and minimizes vascular complications and is commercially available in Europe for extreme-risk surgical patients. The company is progressing toward U.S. regulatory approval and is currently enrolling patients in the SALUS pivotal trial while pursuing expansion outside the U.S. Financially, Direct Flow Medical closed a $32 million financing to support the SALUS trial and international growth. The company has strengthened its commercial leadership with the appointment of Chris Richardson as Chief Commercial Officer and named Dan Rose Vice President and General Manager of EMEA to support global commercialization. Direct Flow Medical develops a transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) system designed with a metal-free frame and a low-profile, flexible delivery system intended to reduce aortic regurgitation. The company won CE Mark approval in the European Union for its flagship TAVI device and has closed a U.S. feasibility study. It has begun initial enrollment in its SALUS U.S. feasibility trial and hopes to proceed to a pivotal trial later this year. Direct Flow is positioning its relative newness as an advantage by addressing surgeon complaints about rival devices. The company faces competition from large medtech firms but is using recent regulatory and clinical milestones to support commercialization efforts. The new financing is intended to support those commercialization activities. Direct Flow Medical develops a catheter-based, percutaneous-delivered prosthetic aortic valve for transcatheter aortic valve replacement. The company is pursuing a Series C financing to fund business build-out in a large, fast-growing market sector. It has raised $40.0M to date toward a projected $42.5M Series C round. Wolverine Venture Fund announced its participation in the Series C; this marks WVF's second investment in the company, the first having occurred in 2005. Past and participating investors named in the articles include Johnson & Johnson Development Corp., Foundation Medical Partners, VantagePoint Venture Partners, ePlanet Ventures, EDF Ventures, New Leaf Venture Partners and Spray Venture Partners. The financing is intended to provide the critical funds the company needs to advance its business, according to WVF commentary. Direct Flow Medical is a Santa Rosa, Calif.-based startup developing heart implants. The company makes minimally invasive aortic-valve replacements for the heart. It raised $27 million in a second funding round. Investors in the round included Johnson & Johnson Development, Foundation Medical Partners, VantagePoint Venture Partners, ePlanet, EDF Ventures, New Leaf Venture Partners and Spray Venture Partners. The article notes the aortic-valve replacement field is booming. Competitors mentioned include JenaValve, AorTx and Sadra.

No current team members are available.