PARIS, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Mauna Kea Technologies, a leader in in-vivo cellular imaging, announced today the closing of a $30 million financing round led by U.S.-based Psilos Group. Mauna Kea Technologies will use the proceeds to expand commercialization of its Cellvizio(R) technology in the US and Europe, as well as to advance additional clinical applications of the platform. Founded in 2000, Mauna Kea Technologies develops and markets Cellvizio, a fundamentally new imaging approach which improves patient care by eliminating the need for unnecessary biopsies and enhances the diagnosis of a broad range of diseases via in vivo cellular imaging.
With over $500 million under management, Psilos Group is a leading healthcare private equity firm with offices in New York, the San Francisco Bay Area and Santa Fe. David Eichler and Albert Waxman of Psilos will both join Mauna Kea Technologies' board. France-based Seventure also participated in this funding round in addition to existing investor Creadev.
"This financing will enable us to expand our U.S. presence and advance our clinical program to validate Cellvizio's utility in improving the diagnosis and treatment of disease found in the esophagus, colon, stomach, bile duct as well as the distal lungs," said Sacha Loiseau, Ph.D., Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mauna Kea Technologies. "We are pleased to have attracted world-caliber investors like Psilos and look forward to working with them as we continue to penetrate the GI and pulmonology markets and expand into additional markets in the future."
"We believe that Cellvizio represents a revolutionary advance in diagnostic imaging that has the potential to change the way physicians diagnose and treat a broad range of diseases," said Psilos Group Managing Member, David Eichler. "Sacha Loiseau has built a strong management team, and we look forward to helping them take the company to the next level of commercial development."
Mauna Kea also announced that it has changed the name of its U.S. operations to Cellvizio Inc. to strengthen brand awareness.
About Mauna Kea Technologies:
Mauna Kea Technologies leads the growing in vivo cellular imaging market enabling physicians to visualize, diagnose and treat pathologies that can not be seen using other imaging techniques. Mauna Kea Technologies' flagship Cellvizio system provides microscopic visualization of mucosal tissue and promises to improve clinical outcomes by increasing the diagnostic yield of existing endoscopic procedures. With over 1000 Cellvizio procedures completed to date, Mauna Kea Technologies is currently focused on the gastroenterology and pulmonology markets. The company plans to expand into other markets in the future. The company also has a distribution agreement with Leica Microsystems to sell products for the Small Animal Imaging market in Europe, the U.S. and Japan.
For more information about Mauna Kea Technologies: www.maunakeatech.com
About Psilos Group
Psilos Group has been a successful healthcare venture capital firm since its founding in 1998 and currently has over $500 million under management. Psilos focuses its investments across the healthcare services, healthcare information technology, and medical technology sectors. Psilos invests in businesses that are poised to create enduring market value by fundamentally improving the U.S. healthcare system. Our portfolio companies are sustainable and high-value businesses that have demonstrated ability to reduce the costs of healthcare delivery, improve clinical quality and advance the alignment of payer, patient and provider incentives.
For more information about Psilos Group: www.psilos.com
About Seventure Partners:
Since 1997, Seventure Partners has invested in innovative French and European companies in the information technology, communications and life sciences sectors. With approximately 500M euros under management, Seventure Partners ranks as a leading player in the European capital markets. Seventure Partners is a subsidiary of Natixis Private Equity, one of the largest private equity investors in Europe.
Seventure is active in all segments of the life sciences industry, including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, industrial biotechnology, nutrition, environmental science, skin care, diagnostics, bio- energy and healthcare services.
For more information on Seventure Partners: www.seventure.fr
CONTACT: Mark Sahl, +1-646-871-8485, msahl@lazarpartners.com, or Fern
Lazar, +1-212-867-1762, flazar@lazarpartners.com, both of Lazar Partners
Web site: http://www.maunakeatech.com/
http://www.psilos.com/
http://www.seventure.fr/
