Pair loads $250,000 from TMC

Two US-based healthcare developers from Texas Medical Center’s (TMC) Innovation Institute startup initiative have each secured $250,000 from the research complex’s Venture Fund.

The two investees are cardiac assist device developer CorInnova and implantable bone growth monitor creator Intelligent Implants.

Both businesses took part in JLabs@TMC, an incubator partnership between TMC and Johnson & Johnson Innovation, part of healthcare firm Johnson & Johnson.

CorInnova is developing a soft robotic pacemaker called Epic Heart to help treat patients who have suffered heart failure. The device synchronises the rhythm of the heart’s two ventricles in an attempt to bolster blood circulation and promote cardiovascular recovery.

CorInnova previously received $350,000 of debt from undisclosed investors in July 2017, according to a securities filing. The latest funding will enable it to carry out final safety studies on animals ahead of a proposed clinical-stage trial.

Founded in Ireland in 2014, Intelligent Implants is commercialising wireless electrotherapeutic implants that help users recuperate from bone diseases by stimulating and monitoring tissue growth in real time. The technology is expected to aid recovery and avoid complications from spinal fusion surgery.

Intelligent Implants previously raised an undisclosed amount from Irish government-owned enterprise support agency Enterprise Ireland in December 2016. The company later opened an office in Houston with support from Johnson & Johnson Innovation in March 2017.

TMC Venture Fund is a $25m vehicle launched in November 2017 to supply early-stage healthcare businesses from the Houston ecosystem. TMC is composed of 48 member institutions.