Procyrion Wins Johnson & Johnson Quick Fire Challenge and Receives Year Residency at the New JLABS @ TMC

Procyrion

HOUSTON, TX (March 3, 2016) -- Houston heart pump developer Procyrion Inc. today announced they have won the Johnson & Johnson Quick Fire Challenge with their ground breaking technology, Aortix™, a catheter-based circulatory support device. Procyrion has been awarded a year residency in the new JLABS facility located within the Texas Medical Center’s Innovation Institute (JLABS @ TMC).

Procyrion’s winning technology, Aortix™, which is thinner than a #2 pencil, is the first catheter-based heart pump designed specifically for the ambulatory treatment of NYHA Class III-IVa heart failure patients who are too sick for medication alone, but not sick enough for risky surgical interventions (e.g. LVAD or transplant). The small but powerful micro pump is placed downstream of the heart in a simple cath-lab procedure and works to support heart function by accelerating native blood flow.

“It is a great honor to be selected as one of the winners for JLABS Quick Fire Challenge,” said Benjamin A. Hertzog, Ph.D., CEO of Procyrion. “Being a part of JLABS @ TMC and having a presence in the middle of everything exciting that is happening at the Texas Medical Center’s Innovation Institute is a great opportunity.  We hope to leverage our resources and work closely with other innovative companies to reach our objective of providing a better solution for both patients and physicians.”

JLABS @ TMC will follow the same no-strings attached approach currently in operation at the California and Boston-based JLABS facilities and was designed to accommodate up to 50 young companies, with 14 common spaces, 22 private labs, two concept or shared labs with 32 workstations, 34 offices and 32 workstations. JLABS @ TMC is the first JLABS with a prototype lab, which features a computer-assisted design workstation and 3-D printer for companies to design and build their products. There is plenty of private space, but 36 percent of JLABS @ TMC is shared office space creating common ground to leverage resources.

ABOUT PROCYRION
Houston-based medical device firm Procyrion, Inc. is developing the first catheter-deployed, intra-aortic pump for ambulatory use.  The device is designed to rest and heal the heart by reducing afterload while simultaneously improving blood flow to vital organs. This groundbreaking cardiology tool, conceived by cardiologist Dr. Reynolds M. Delgado, III, medical director of Mechanical Support Devices in Heart Failure at the Texas Heart Institute, is expected to provide a minimally invasive treatment option for millions of chronic heart failure patients.  For more information, visit www.procyrion.com or call 713.579.9227.

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