Innosphere, Highpoint invest in award-winning med-tech firm
FORT COLLINS and BOULDER — Innosphere Ventures and Highpoint Ventures have invested in Origin Endoscopy, a Maryland-based medical-technology company that has been recognized for its innovation.
An early-stage company based in Pasadena, Maryland, Origin has won the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy’s Innovation Award for its novel sustained-release epinephrine gel technology. The award will be presented at the upcoming Digestive Disease Week conference, to be Saturday through Tuesday in Chicago.
The investment support of Fort Collins-based Innosphere Ventures and Boulder-based Highpoint Ventures will help Origin Endoscopy finalize ongoing safety and efficacy studies, as well as develop prototypes of the endoscopic delivery device that will be used commercially.
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Origin Endoscopy was formed through a collaboration of inventors from Johns Hopkins Medicine and the University of Maryland, as well as commercial experts in the interventional endoscopy space. Their primary technology, developed by Dr. Venkata Akshintala and Dr. Stephen Hoag, is designed to control and extend the hemostatic effects of gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding during a variety of endoscopy procedures.
GI bleeding is a common issue during endoscopic procedures, occurring in an estimated 1 million cases annually in the United States. Origin Endoscopy’s technology addresses the challenges associated with procedures such as endoscopic mucosal resection or endoscopic submucosal dissection, providing better patient outcomes.
According to Dr. Venkata Akshintala, “Current products to treat GI bleeding have challenges and limitations, so we created a durable and innovative gel unlike anything in the market that every endoscopist can use to manage a variety of gastrointestinal bleeding conditions and promote healing of the injured site.”
Jason Grimes, managing director of Highpoint Ventures, said the venture-capital company “is excited to lead this pre-seed investment in Origin Endoscopy in partnership with Innosphere Ventures. We believe the gastrointestinal market is ripe for innovation and are excited to partner with a founding team that has demonstrated success in gastrointestinal medicine, applied pharmaceuticals, and medical-device commercialization. Highpoint believes Origin will be able to develop innovative GI solutions in a capital efficient manner. Their products will improve outcomes, reduce costs, and provide better care for patients.”
Highpoint Ventures provides venture capital and operational expertise to early-stage health care and technology companies in select high-potential verticals, including med tech, digital health, health care information technology and enterprise software.
Innosphere Ventures Fund leads early-stage investments for companies who are driving innovation in the B2B SaaS software, cleantech and med-tech sectors. Innosphere’s accelerator program has operated for more than two decades.
