The three investees include regenerative cardiovascular medicine developer CorMatrix, which had previously raised a total of $38.5m in funding.
Purdue Research Foundation, the tech transfer affiliate of Purdue University, backed three US-based life science businesses linked to the university with $250,000 in funding each on Thursday.
The recipients are wearable glaucoma management device developer Bionode, oncological and kidney disease diagnostics company Amplified Sciences and regenerative cardiovascular medicine developer CorMatrix.
Purdue Research Foundation made the investments through its $12m Foundry Investment Fund (FIF), a co-investment partnership with medical device supplier Cook Medical that supports emerging Purdue-linked companies in the plant sciences and human or animal health sectors.
Bionode has designed a wearable neuro-modulation device that assists glaucoma patients in preventing elevated intra-ocular pressure that can endanger the optic nerve behind the eye.
The device resides in a specially-built pair of spectacles, creating an electromagnetic field that activates structures in the eye responsible for discharging fluid. The spinout was co-founded by Pedro Irazoqui, an assistant professor in the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering
CorMatrix’s technology allows clinicians to rehabilitate damaged cardiac tissues by using extracellular matrices based on submucosa found in the small intestine.
CorMatrix was started by Robert Matheny, a former researcher at the university. It received a total $38.5m through equity and convertible notes before the latest investment, according to securities filings, including $8m in equity from unnamed investors in 2018 and $24.6m in 2013.
The company received $17.5m from biotech developer Ligand Pharmaceuticals in 2016 in exchange for a revenue share on its existing market range and potential product pipeline, though Ligand sold a 75% share of these royalties onto regenerative medicine supplier Aziyo Biologics the following year.
Finally, Amplified Sciences hopes to combine sensors and biospecimens to scan bodily fluids for signs of oncological and kidney disease. Vincent Jo Davisson, a professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, co-founded the spinout.
Both Bionode and Amplified Sciences received backing from the university’s Elevate Purdue Foundry Fund in 2017, securing a $20,000 non-recourse note for fulfilling the program’s first-tier black award criteria, and $80,000 for the second-tier gold award.
John Hanak, managing director of Purdue Ventures, said: “The FIF has invested approximately $4.2m over the past four years in various life science companies with Purdue and state of Indiana connections.
“This fund makes investments in companies that have secured external smart money capital from the likes of venture funds and other institutional and professional investment sources.
“In the future, we will continue to review emerging technologies with potential for outside and FIF investment.”
