Med·Investment | News: Medical Device Investment Events (2024.06.22–2024.07.05)

Suzhou Weibang Zhendian Optoelectronic Technology Co., Ltd. ("Weibang Zhendian" for short) announced the completion of nearly RMB 100 million in its Series A+ round of financing, led by Daoyuan Capital, with existing shareholder Fengrui Capital making an oversubscribed follow-on investment, and Founder Hesheng participating in the round. The funds from this round will be used to accelerate the commercialization and rapid scaling of Weibang Zhendian's spectral analysis products, iterative development of industrial solutions, and research on ultra-multiplex immunohistochemistry applications.

Suzhou Weibang Zhendian Optoelectronic Technology Co., Ltd. is a high-tech enterprise centered on innovation in molecular vibrational spectroscopy technology, committed to developing high-end Chinese-produced spectral analysis and imaging products, as well as precision medical diagnostic platforms. Established in 2017, the company includes subsidiaries such as Zhendian (Suzhou) Medical Technology Co., Ltd. and Weipeng (Suzhou) Medical Device Co., Ltd. The company has been awarded qualifications as a national high-tech enterprise, received the title of Leading Talent in Science and Technology of Suzhou Industrial Park, and won second prize in China's Medical Device Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition. The core team has years of R&D experience in spectroscopy technology, optical imaging, and optoelectronic analysis, with over 10 self-developed core patents and 16 exclusive authorized patents from world-renowned research institutions. The company currently occupies more than 1,000 square meters of R&D and production space, equipped with a robust design development system and quality control system, and has obtained certifications for medical device quality management systems and GMP compliance.

Suzhou Weibang Zhendian Optoelectronic Technology Co., Ltd. has independently developed three major spectroscopy technology platforms: the Coherent Raman Technology Platform, the Transient Absorption Technology Platform, and the Instantaneous Laser Infrared Technology Platform. These platforms significantly enhance core metrics such as specificity, sensitivity, resolution, and imaging speed. Among them, the Coherent Raman Technology Platform improves sensitivity by 106 times compared to spontaneous Raman, with an imaging resolution of 200-500nm. It offers chemical specificity, enabling specific identification of molecular vibrations, label-free and non-destructive imaging, avoiding phototoxicity and photobleaching caused by fluorescence that leads to unanalyzable data. Compared to techniques like chromatography and mass spectrometry, it allows for single-cell in-situ analysis akin to fluorescence imaging. Additionally, the company’s Instantaneous Laser Infrared Technology Platform boasts significant advantages such as high resolution, rapid imaging, high sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio, and water background suppression. The Transient Absorption Technology Platform leads industry development with features like a sensitivity of up to 10⁻⁷ OD (with an integration time of 100 μs) and ultra-high imaging speed with a scanning frequency of up to 10 FPS.

Recently, TowardPi, a leading enterprise in China's high-end ophthalmic medical device industry, has completed its D-round financing of 200 million yuan. This round of financing was led by Matrix Partners, with follow-up investments from institutions such as GTCapital.

TowardPi was founded in 2017, with its core technology originating from the transformation of scientific and technological achievements at Tsinghua University. The core technical team consists of dozens of Tsinghua University faculty, students, and alumni. Since its establishment, the company has achieved breakthroughs in multiple categories of high-end ophthalmic equipment through the vertical integration of clinical ophthalmology needs, innovative system functions, and high-performance upstream components.

Since its establishment, TowardPi has leveraged China's optoelectronic industry and research institution resources, focusing on the independent research and development of key optoelectronic components. When the functionality of product systems was limited by components, the company was still able to achieve performance breakthroughs in the vertical direction through underlying technologies. This model has also driven technological advancements in the field of optoelectronic components for medical applications in China, demonstrating the direct impact of new quality productivity on medical device enterprises.

Driven by outstanding domestic companies like TowardPi, the trust of Chinese ophthalmologists in domestically produced products has significantly increased. With the launch of TowardPi's high-end surgical microscope series "Dialing Clouds" and "Brushing Snow," as well as the promotion of new products like "Candlelight" and "Meridian," the full localization of ophthalmic medical equipment in China will be rapidly achieved.

In addition, TowardPi's products have achieved sales and installation in many countries such as France, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Greece. Overseas revenue is growing rapidly, and the globalization layout is gradually improving.

Shixi (Guangzhou) Biotechnology Co., Ltd. ("Shixi Bio" for short), a research and development company that develops innovative drugs through targeted RNA technology, announced the completion of the first closing of an angel+ round of financing worth tens of millions of yuan. This round of financing was jointly led by Beijing Life Science Park Ventures, TianTu Investment, and Yae Capital, with participation from BeiGene BioIsland Innovation Center ("BeiGene Innovation Center" for short). Xiaochi Capital continued to increase its investment, and Hoyer Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor. The funds will be used for the research and development of the company’s core projects, clinical applications, and team expansion.

The company's first pipeline for treating nervous system diseases, which is currently being advanced, has completed the preliminary molecular research and is currently in the preclinical stage. It is expected to file an IND application in 2025.

Shixi Bio is a nucleic acid drug research and development company that focuses on developing innovative drugs for indications without effective conventional treatments through an RNA editing technology platform. The key therapeutic areas include cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, neurological disorders, respiratory conditions, anti-aging, and other fields with significant unmet clinical needs. Shixi Bio has established its proprietary RNA editing platform based on the technology transfer from Professor Rui Zhang's lab at the School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University. Located in the Bio Island of Guangzhou at the Beigene Innovation Center, the company has built a comprehensive R&D platform encompassing drug discovery, biological validation, and delivery system development.

Phrontline Biopharma, a Chinese bispecific antibody ADC company, announced the completion of a Pre-A round financing exceeding 100 million yuan, exclusively invested by Decheng Capital, with Index Capital serving as the exclusive financial advisor. After this round of financing, Phrontline will increase its R&D investment, accelerate the advancement of multiple preclinical pipelines, upgrade its proprietary technology platform, and move faster towards the vision of "becoming a global leading pharmaceutical company."

TowardPi was founded in early 2022, firmly committed to the source innovation of ADC drugs. Its proprietary technology platform covers the four core technologies of ADC drugs (toxins, linkers, conjugation methods, and antibodies), rapidly establishing advanced antibody discovery and bispecific antibody preparation platforms, a Linker-Payload design and synthesis platform, and a site-specific and quantitative conjugation technology platform.

TowardPi Pharmaceutical has gathered the most comprehensive talents in the ADC research and development field, with team members having over a decade of experience in the overall design and R&D of ADCs. Among them, founder Dr. Zhaoyuan Chen is a senior scientist in the ADC field who has led the development of more than 10 ADC drug pipelines. He has extremely rich experience in bispecific ADCs, with the fastest-progressing bispecific ADC already entering Phase II clinical trials. The head of biology, Dr. Siyi Hu, has over a decade of experience in anti-tumor drug research and is one of the earliest senior scientists in China to engage in antibody drug discovery. The head of chemistry, Dr. Yanli Mao, is a senior ADC medicinal chemistry expert in China with nearly 20 years of innovative drug R&D experience, particularly abundant expertise in the design and synthesis of linker-payloads.

The team designed and synthesized small-molecule toxins with different mechanisms of action (MOA) from scratch, and developed corresponding linkers based on the physicochemical properties of different toxins, resulting in a rich reserve of linker-payloads. The related technical achievements have been submitted for international patent application.

The company has also independently developed site-specific and quantitative conjugation technology, with significantly higher conjugation uniformity than industry standards. It can utilize two different conjugation technologies to introduce two linker-payloads, enabling the combination of toxins with different mechanisms of action (MOAs) to address the issue of single-toxin resistance.

In response to the pain points of existing monoclonal antibody ADC druggability, Topthera Pharma has developed a highly forward-looking and differentiated pipeline strategy. It has designed globally pioneering molecular pipelines such as dual-target ADCs and dual-linker-payload ADCs, offering a wider therapeutic window and addressing issues faced by monoclonal antibody ADCs, including toxin resistance and ineffectiveness in low-expression populations.

Currently, the company is rapidly advancing multiple bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) pipelines. Compared with monoclonal antibody ADCs targeting the same antigen, its core R&D project, TJ101, has demonstrated superior tumor selectivity and growth inhibition effects in various preclinical tumor models. Its potential indications include several solid tumors such as lung cancer and head and neck cancer.

METiS Pharmaceuticals, an innovative biotechnology company focusing on "AI + drug delivery," announced the completion of its $100 million Series C financing round. This round was led by a fund under CICC Capital, with participation from Taiping Hong Kong Insurance Innovation Fund under China Taiping. Combined with previous investments from top-tier institutions such as Sequoia China, Guoshou Equity, PICC Equity, 5Y Capital, Frees Fund, Source Code Capital, Lightspeed Lightstone, and LSI Capital, METiS Pharmaceuticals has raised nearly $300 million in total funding.

Jitai Pharmaceuticals was founded in 2020 by Dr. Hongmin Chen, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, along with Dr. Caida Lai and Dr. Wenshou Wang, both top scientists from MIT. The company leverages AI-driven precision-targeted drug delivery and drug discovery, focusing on the development of innovative nanomaterials and more effective therapeutic drugs for patients. It has now become one of the world's leading drug delivery platforms. The funds from this round of financing will primarily be used to further advance the construction of the AI + drug delivery platform and the development of its self-research pipeline, supporting Jitai Pharmaceuticals in continuously innovating within the field of drug delivery.