News Briefs

Prolor Biotech reported positive preclinical results from an animal study of its long-acting obesity/Type II diabetes drug candidate MOD-6030. During the trial, the drug was administered to diet-induced obese mice once weekly over a 30-day period. According to Prolor, the results demonstrated efficacy in reducing weight, lowering blood glucose levels, increasing insulin sensitivity and reducing cholesterol levels as compared to a group that received placebo.

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Israeli developer of noninvasive medical devices for the treatment of neurological and psychopathological disorders, Brainsway, announced positive results in its trial for the treatment of severe depression. The treatment, which uses a Deep Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) device, was found to be effective and safe – company announced. The trial included 250 patients and showed improvements among those treated with Deep TMS compared to the control group, based on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale.

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Stratasys and Objet, two companies specializing in the manufacturing of 3D printers, announced a definitive merger agreement under which the companies would combine in an all-stock transaction with a combined equity value of approximately $1.4 billion. The combined company, which will operate under the name Stratasys Ltd., will have dual headquarters in Eden Prairie, Minnesota and Rehovot, Israel, the locations of Stratasys’ and Objet’s current headquarters, respectively. The company will be registered in Israel.

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Conduit, provider of engagement solutions for web and mobile publishers, announced that an investment fund advised by J.P Morgan Asset Management has agreed to take an approximate 7% stake in the company. Conduit, founded in 2005, confirmed that the purchase is expected to represent an approximate $100 million stake, reflecting a company value of $1.3 billion.

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WalkMe, a Tel Aviv based startup that provides online step-by-step guidance systems, announced that it has received funding from Mangrove Capital Partners. The amount of funding remained undisclosed but is estimated at over $1 million. The funding allows WalkMe to broaden its marketing efforts, company announced. WalkMe’s system provides web publishers and online service providers with tools to guide site-users throughout online tasks such as operating business software, filling out forms and banking activities – thus reducing the demand for helpdesk support. The service was publicly launched in April 2012.

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Tel Aviv was ranked fifth out of the world´s top 25 startup ecosystems, in a ranking made by Startup Genome – an R&D project that aims to provide comparative analysis on entrepreneurial ecosystems around the world. Their Startup Compass tool allows entrepreneurs to evaluate their progress compared to other startups. According to Startup Genome’s data, the Israeli city was ranked after Silicon Valley, New York City, London and Toronto based on an average of parameters such as throughput, success rate, availability of capital and market type.

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DesignArt Networks, an Israeli company that designs solutions for the mobile 3G, 4G and high-speed wireless backhaul infrastructure, is holding acquisition talks for approximately $100-150 million, Israeli media reports. According to the reports, possible buyers are chip companies in the field of communications equipment, such as Intel Corp. and Qualcomm. DesignArt Networks was founded in 2006 and is based in Ra’anana, Israel.

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BGN Technologies, the technology transfer company for Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), has signed a licensing agreement for its V-Smart drug delivery technology with Lauren Sciences LLC, a privately held biotechnology company in New York. Lauren Sciences will develop the technology as a platform for treating a variety of diseases that affect the central nervous system, including Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The V-Smart technology pinpoints where the drug will be released in the brain, to increase efficacy and reduce adverse effects.

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Israeli biopharmaceutical company Can-Fite BioPharma announced successful results in the preclinical trial of CF101 – a drug for the treatment of inflammations of the uvea, which is the middle layer of the eye. Such inflammations can result in blindness and according to the company are the fifth or sixth leading causes of blindness in the US.

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Israeli Biomed company ConTIPI has been sold for approximately $90 million to an international company whose name has not been disclosed. ConTIPI, founded in 2002 by gynecologists Dr. Ilan Ziv and Zeev Bronfeld, is developing a tampon-like device for the prevention of urine leakage and treatments of faulty functioning of the cervix in women. The sale is subject to approval of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Office of the Chief Scientist.

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Online family network MyHeritage announced the availability of the first indexed records from the 1940 US Census, searchable by names, facts and other criteria. The index can be searched in 38 languages. In addition, MyHeritage has published two million images of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census out of the total 3.8 million. According to the Israel-based company, it has more than 62 million registered users and will soon launch a mobile search app for the 1940 census for iPhones, iPads and Android smartphones.

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Rosetta Green, an Israeli agro-biotechnology company that develops improved crop traits for the agriculture and alternative fuel industries, signed a licensing agreement with Bayer CropScience, which specializes in the production and commercialization of seeds. The two companies will launch a joint project to develop new cotton varieties that could produce better yields under difficult environmental conditions such as drought.

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Global provider of healthcare products Covidien announced a definitive agreement to acquire the Israeli medical device company Oridion Systems, for $346 million. The Jerusalem-based company develops products to monitor ventilation adequacy and provide an early indication of airway compromise. The companies expect to complete the merger in the second calendar quarter of 2012. Last month Coviden also announced the acquisition of the Israeli company superDimension, for $350 million.

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Israeli Foreign Trade Administration announced today a new joint Israeli-Korean investment fund established to promote advanced medical and biological technology. The investment fund was launched by the Israeli Minister of Science and Technology along with senior South Korean government officials. Together with several Israeli and foreign investment firms, the fund was launched with initial commitments of approximately $34 million.

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CTERA Networks, the provider of cloud storage enablement solutions, announced a new app for Apple iOS and Android, named CTERA Mobile. The app allows business users to access files and backups, while providing enterprise-grade security features and Active Directory integration. The mobile app is free to CTERA customers as part of its next software release and according to the company it will be available to download later this month.

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