A Medical Device Daily

ArtusLabs (Durham, North Carolina), a provider of life science software tools and data management solutions, reported closing a $2.6 million A-round of venture financing, led by Hatteras Venture Partners and Southern Capitol Ventures.

The company said its technology platform, Ensemble for Life Science, can potentially reduce the R&D time a pharma or biotech organization spends discovering and developing novel therapeutic compounds.

ArtusLabs said it will use the investment to expand its breadth of service, marketing efforts and new product development initiatives.

"A competitive marketplace has put intense pressure on life science companies to better streamline costs and increase operating efficiencies," said David Jones, a principal at Southern Capitol Ventures. "ArtusLabs has developed software solutions with the latest Web 2.0 technologies that directly address these challenges."

According to the company, the life science industry spends nearly $900 million a year on data management solutions and another $300 million on internal programs.

Non-Invasive Monitoring Systems (NIMS; North Bay Village, Florida) reported receiving $1.5 million in funding from a group of private investors. The financing resulted from the issuance of 1,000 shares of Series D convertible preferred stock at $1,500 a share, with each share convertible to 5,000 shares of common stock.

"This investment improves our current capital position, and we believe it will help fund the commercial launch of the Exer-Rest medical device," said Marvin Sackner, CEO and chairman of NIMS.

Sackner said that NIMS, an ISO 13485-certified company, is licensed to sell its Exer-Rest medical device in Canada, the UK and the European Community, adding that the company "is preparing to sell outside the United States while the company moves towards 510(k) FDA approval in the States."

NIMS says the Exer-Rest device serves as an aid to improving circulation, increasing joint mobility and providing temporary relief of minor aches and pains.

In other financing news:

• Guardian Technologies International (Herndon, Virginia), a developer of intelligent imaging informatics solutions for the homeland security and healthcare industries, has entered into agreements with five existing and four new accredited investors for the private placement of about 10 million shares of its common stock at a price of 70 cents per share for expected gross proceeds of about $7 million. There were no discounts or brokerage fees associated with the offering.

Guardian said it expects to use the proceeds to advance its international business development activities, healthcare research and development activities, and fund general corporate operations.

Two closings are scheduled to occur with $5.15 million having closed on April 4, and the second closing expected to occur on or about May 30.

Guardian's software solutions can be seamlessly installed to compliment existing imaging devices, such as baggage scanners and medical MRI, to scan the contents of any image and immediately identify items of interest not easily discernable by the human eye, the company said. The company said that existing medical imaging devices used in Computer Aided Detection (CAD) are further improved with Guardian's auto-diagnostic ability to detect anomalous tissue (e.g., tumors) and other potential disease states or conditions.

• AGI Dermatics (Freeport, New York), a company focused on the development of skincare products utilizing DNA repair technology, said it closed a $5 million investment round led by existing investor Trevi Health Ventures and new investor Spring Mountain Capital.

The company said the new capital is being used to fund the continued growth of the Remergent brand skincare, including the launch of four new products.

The company said the Remergent skincare line is designed to preserve and restore healthy skin using DNA repair enzymes delivered to the skin via a liposome delivery system.

"This investment provides us with a platform to expand the reach of our technology into the marketplace," said Daniel Yarosh, PhD, president of AGI.