Abiomed invests in Israeli medical device maker Magenta

[September 28, 2017] JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli medical device company Magenta Medical said on Thursday it has raised $15 million in funding led by Massachusetts-based Abiomed Inc, a maker of catheter-based heart pumps, and venture capital firm Pitango.

Japanese venture capital group JAFCO and a group of cardiovascular experts also invested in the round.

The Israeli startup is developing an apparatus for treating acute heart failure which it says can alleviate congestion faster and more safely than diuretics alone. Heart failure afflicts approximately 6.5 million people in the United States alone.

Ehud Schwammenthal, Magenta's co-founder and chief medical officer, said the company's first product was in clinical trials in Europe. The funding, he said, will allow the firm to expand the clinical program, with the goal of getting approval in Europe and a second study going in the United States.

(Reporting by Dan Pleck; Editing by Tova Cohen)

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