This story was originally published Sept. 27
OpGen, a commercial provider of optical restriction-mapping technology, has raised $17 million in Series B financing.
The financing adds to $23.6 million that the company raised in a Series A round in 2007 (IS 9/21/2007). The Series B was led by jVen Capital with participation from the company's other major investors, including CHL Medical Partners, Highland Capital Partners, Mason Wells Biomedical, and Versant Ventures. In addition, Evan Jones, the managing member of jVen Capital, has been named executive chairman of OpGen's board of directors.
OpGen's commercial optical mapping system, which was launched this June for microbial genome analysis, is an automated technology for generating maps that can be used in strain typing, comparative genomics, and sequence assembly.
The new funding will support marketing for the technology, dubbed the Argus Optical Mapping System. It will also "fuel our efforts to expand into new markets, including the development of new applications that will complement sequencing technologies and help facilitate rapid completion of large genome mapping and finishing technologies currently under development at the company," OpGen's CEO Douglas White said in a statement.
According to the company, the Argus system will have a wide range of applications in fields such as biodefense, outbreak management, agriculture, and clinical microbiology.
OpGen's customers include biodefense organizations, genomic research centers, academic institutions, clinical research organizations, and biotechnology companies.