Lab tech firm rounds up $17M in Series B cash

With its first product slated to hit the life sciences market early next year, Pleasanton, CA-based QuantaLife has rounded up $17.2 million in Series B money from a group of backers. QuantaLife has been working on new technology for researchers in the drug development field.

The fledgling life sciences company was set up in 2008 by a group of scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The company is developing a next-gen nucleic acid testing platform.

"QuantaLife's technology is very compelling and represents a unique opportunity to establish a new standard for the future of genomics research and nucleic acid testing, with a simple, reliable and cost-effective solution," says Francois Valencony, managing director of Merieux Developpement, one of the new investors. The round was led by Paladin Capital Group and also included Vital Financial.

"Droplet Digital PCR establishes a new standard for nucleic acid measurement, including the absolute quantification of DNA, RNA, and miRNA. It has a myriad of potential uses--in the research laboratory and in the clinic," adds CEO Bill Colston.

- here's the QuantaLife release