Funding roundup: At-home medical exams and a Parkinson’s treatment – MedCity News

By daniellenierenberg

Tyto Cares kit includes a connected otoscope among other things

Numerous startups offering telehealth or remote monitoring solutions closed funding rounds this week, despite slowing activity due to the Covid-19 pandemic. One of them is Tyto Care, a startup with a platform for at-home medical exams. It actually includes a kit with several tools that can allow physicians to remotely listen to a patients heart, measure their temperature, and image their throat and ears. Several hospitals in Israel, including Sheba Medical Center, deployed its technology to care for patients remotely.

On the biotech side, there were some notable rounds, too, including $70 million for Aspen Neuroscience, which is developing a new treatment for Parkinsons disease. The company was founded by Scripps Research Professor Emeritus Jeanne Loring, who developed a way to turn pluripotent skin cells derived from skin cells or other adult cells into neurons that produce dopamine.

Read more about the companies that recently raised funding:

Tyto Care

Funding amount: $50 million

Headquarters: New York, Israel

Tyto Care, a company that lets people conduct at-home medical exams, already saw rising demand before the Covid-19 pandemic. The company said it saw threefold growth in sales last year and has continued to see its users increase during the pandemic. Its at-home telehealth kit includes a handheld device with attachments that allow physicians to remotely listen to the heart and lungs, measure temperature, and look at the throat and ears during an exam.

The company closed an oversubscribed $50 million round, co-led by Insight Partners, Olive Tree Ventures and Qualcomm Ventures. Tyto Care plans to use the additional funds to further expand its footprint in the U.S., Europe and Asia, and add new features to its platform, such as home diagnostics.

Aspen Neuroscience

Funding amount: $70 million

Headquarters: San Diego, California

Aspen Neuroscience is developing a treatment for Parkinsons disease using a patients own cells. The company uses induced pluripotent stem cells to make dopamine-producing neurons, which are affected by the disease.

The company closed a $70 million series A round, led by New York-based healthcare investor OrbiMed, with participation from ARCH Venture Partners, Frazier Healthcare Partners, Domain Associates, Section 32 and Sam Altman.

We are impressed by the progress Aspen has made to date against its goals to develop innovative therapies to treat Parkinson disease and encouraged by the broader investment communitys support of the company, OrbiMed Managing Partner Jonathan Silverstein said in a news release.

The company plans to use the capital to fund the development of its lead candidate, including completing studies needed to submit an investigational new drug application to the FDA, and recruiting for clinical trials.

Tango Therapeutics

Funding amount: $60 million

Headquarters: Cambridge, Massachusetts

Tango Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focusing on developing cancer therapies, closed a $60 million series B round. The company is working on developing treatments to counteract the loss of tumor suppressor genes, reverse cancer cells ability to evade the immune system, and identify new combinations that are more effective than single-agent therapies. The oversubscribed financing was led by Boxer Capital, with additional new investors in Cormorant Asset Management and Casdin Capital.

SonderMind

Funding amount: $27 million

Headquarters: Denver, Colorado

SonderMind, a startup that matches users with in-network therapists, raised $27 million in funding. The series B round was led by prominent VC General Catalyst and F-Prime Capital. Existing investors include the Kickstart Seed Fund, Di?ko Ventures and Jonathan Bush.

The company has a large network of behavioral providers in Colorado, and is expanding in Texas and Arizona. It plans to use the proceeds of the funding round to expand its partnership with payors, employers and health systems.

SilverCloud

Funding amount: $16 million

Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts

SilverCloud has seen an uptick in users tapping into its mental health programs for depression, anxiety and other conditions. The company raised a $30 million series B round, led by MemorialCare Innovation Fund, the VC arm of MemorialCare Health System. Other participating investors included LRVHealth, OSF Ventures and UnityPoint Health Ventures.

So far, the company had drummed up partnerships with more than 300 companies. Notably, it was also one of the products selected for Express Scripts first digital health formulary. SilverCloud said it would use the additional funds to expand access to mental health support services for healthcare professionals, as well as their families and their patients.

CyberMDX

Funding: $20 million

Headquarters: New York

Healthcare security startup CyberMDX closed a $20 million funding round. Sham, a French risk management and insurance provider, led the funding round, with participation from Pitango Venture Capital and Oure Ventures.

CyberMDX monitors a providers network for threats to its IT systems, connected medical devices, and other IoT devices. The company said it will use the $20 million to expand its platform to new markets.

Photo credit: Tyto Care

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Funding roundup: At-home medical exams and a Parkinson's treatment - MedCity News