Regentis grabs $10M Series C for cartilage regeneration implant trials

Regentis Biomaterials, armed with $10 million in new venture funding, plans to use the cash to expand in Europe and fuel further clinical development of its GelrinC biodegradable cartilage regeneration implant.

The startup attracted a slew of investors for its Series C round, including Royal DSM, Crossroad Fund, Medica Venture Partners, SCP Vitalife and the Technion Investment Opportunities Fund. Does Royal DSM sound familiar? It should. Earlier this month, Dutch conglomerate ($DSM) announced a $360 million cash bid for Kensey Nash, a regenerative medicine-focused device company. Clearly, DSM is eyeing some growth in the space and Regentis could be an acquisition target if its clinical development is ultimately successful.

Regentis' GelrinC product is a biodegradable hydrogel implant made of polyethylene glycol diacrylate and denatured fibrinogen, designed to help regenerate cartilage in damaged knees. The company cites preclinical studies that have shown its product can restore cartilage, but its viability is yet to be proven in human trials. As GelrinC isn't on the market yet, Regentis is conducting a pilot study at multiple centers in Europe (a reason why it needs to boosts its presence there) and Israel to evaluate the product's safety and performance. The device is approved for the testing of safety and performance in Europe, the U.S. and Israel.

Launched in 2004, Regentis is based in Or Akiva, Israel and Princeton, NJ.

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