Thrixen secures $9.53m funding for point-of-care diagnostic technology

The capital was raised through 22Health Ventures and Aldevron co-founder John Ballantyne.

Medical technology start-up Thrixen announced that it was able to raise $9.53m (US$7m) following the closing of an oversubscribed funding round co-led by new investors 22Health Ventures, an early-stage health technology venture firm, and Aldevron co-founder John Ballantyne.

In a statement, Thrixen said the funding will be used to advance the development of its novel diagnostic technology platform that can possibly perform multiplex diagnostic tests at the point of care for the first time. 

“At the heart of this innovation is Thrixen’s proprietary assay technology, a protein engineering platform that replaces the use of antibodies, which has proven 99.5% sensitivity in clinical trials conducted to date,” the company said.

Thrixen said the technology being developed is VIBEX rapid multiplex test that distinguishes between bacterial and viral infections based on a finger prick sample within 10 minutes.

“By advancing technology we are addressing a crucial need to improve patient care and outcomes by enabling healthcare professionals to make faster, more accurate medical decisions at the point of care. This investment and our new partnerships will be instrumental in allowing Thrixen to develop its initial use cases in ways that will facilitate successful clinical trials and establish a robust regulatory package to bring our product to market,” Thrixen CEO Shavit Clein said.

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Aside from capital, 22Health Ventures will allow Thrixen to access the US market through its ecosystem of American healthcare providers, the start-up said. It can also gain operating expertise and management guidance with 22Health co-founder and managing partner Ara Tavitian joining Thrixen as a board member, it added.

Thrixen’s existing investors include Ntuitive and private investors.

(US$1=S$1.36)