A new, magnet-based technology to destroy blood clots could improve the standard of care for ischemic stroke and deep vein thrombosis, says a St. Louis, Missouri medical device startup.Pulse Therapeutics closed in on $3.1 million late last year for its technology, which is intended to improve the delivery of the thrombolytic drug tPA used in [...]

A St. Louis, Missouri medical device company is raising money in preparation for clinical trials of its pain-free cardioversion therapy for atrial fibrillation, developed by a former Case Western Reserve University researcher.CardiaLen Inc. has secured $2.4 million for its implantable low-voltage atrial cardioverter, technology developed by Prof. Igor Efimov and licensed from Washington University and [...]

A Missouri biotech company developing a laser-guided cancer vaccine therapy is raising money to get into clinical trials by the end of the year.Immunophotonics has so far focused its laser-assisted immunotherapy, called inCVAX, primarily on breast cancer treatment. The two-step device and drug process attacks late-stage metastatic cancer. It first injects a tumor with laser [...]

The National Women’s Health Network is asking its members to protest the 15,000 percent increase in the price that KV Pharmaceuticals is charging for its premature labor prevention drug. The price increase, covered in this AP story, will hike the cost of pregnancy for women at risk of early labor by [...]

Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare: Another lackluster biotech IPO: Although shares of Trius Therapeutics closed flat on the anti-infective drug developer’s first day of trading, no matter what happened the company’s public debut has to be considered a disappointment. After hoping for a price of $12 to $14 [...]

More than a decade after its founding, Kereos Inc. is planning in the fourth quarter to begin its first-ever U.S. clinical trial.The company plans to conduct tests on an MRI imaging agent that will help physicians better and more quickly diagnose diseases, said Phil Buckler, the company’s chief operating officer.Many details of the Phase 1 [...]

Kereos Inc. has raised $5.6 million in equity to further develop cancer and cardiovascular-disease drugs and imaging agents, according to a regulatory filing.The company has four products in development–an MRI agent for tumor detection, a targeted chemotherapy for solid tumors, an MRI agent to detect cardiovascular disease, and an anti-restenotic, according to its website. (Restenosis [...]

Veran Medical Technologies has raised nearly $1 million for its imaging systems that help surgeons perform minimally invasive procedures.The fundraise comes in the form of debt, options, warrants and other securities, according to a regulatory document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The funding came from three investors, and the company is looking to [...]

Evogen’s air-sampling technology is designed for use in a number of industries, including biodefense, clinical, research and environmental. Formerly known as Sceptor Industries Inc., the company formed in 2002 as a spin-off from the Kansas City-based Midwest Research Institute shortly after the anthrax scare in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The company will use the new funding to expand its sales and marketing efforts and help new clients finance the start-up costs of implementing Advanced ICU’s technology.