J&J joins Edwards in $28m Series B for arterial shunt dev V-Wave

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) joined previous investor Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW) in a $28 million Series B round to support heart failure treating interarterial shunt maker V-Wave, according to a press release posted yesterday.

Other groups joining the round included newly-invested TriVentures, Pura Vida Investments and BioStar Ventures, with returning investors Pontifax and the BRM group.

“With the backing of our new and prior investors, we can now accelerate development and clinical evaluation of a new therapy applicable for a large segment of HF patients who need additional treatment options. Together with company President Erez Rozenfeld, we are building a team with the potential to make V-Wave’s unidirectional shunt achieve the data and milestones needed for regulatory approvals and commercialization in the U.S. and around the world,” V-Wave CEO Dr. Neal Eigler said in a prepared statement.

Funds will go to support clinical evaluation and development, addition of senior management and scaling up manufacturing of the HF-treating shunt.

“The V-Wave product has the potential to radically transform the treatment for advanced, ambulatory Heart Failure. Clinical results to date, in more than 30 patients with follow-up averaging 11 months, are highly encouraging. We are delighted to be part of an investor syndicate that includes both strategic and financial investors with such deep understanding of the cardiovascular space,” V-Wave chair Dr. Frank Litvack said in prepared remarks.

The interarterial shunt is designed to be implanted trans-venously and placed in the atrial septum, where a valve regulates left to right shunting of blood to reduce the chance of paradoxical embolus. The device is also designed to regulate left atrial pressure by shunting excess blood away from the left ventricle.

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