Scott Garrett, former chairman and chief executive at Brea-based Beckman Coulter Inc., believes Irvine-based Pathnostics is a winner in urology diagnostics.
Garrett, who left Beckman in 2010, is senior operating partner at Chicago-based Water Street Healthcare Partners, which in late February invested in Pathnostics on undisclosed terms.
Water Street typically invests between $50 million to $500 million and described Pathnostics as a “fast growing company.”
Pathnostics has developed a Guidance UTI test that simultaneously diagnoses and guides antibiotic treatment for complex, recurring urinary tract infections.
The technology is “a breakthrough,” Garrett said in a statement. “Its proven ability to swiftly deliver highly accurate therapeutic guidance enables physicians to immediately treat complex and chronic infections.”
Pathnostics Chief Executive Dave Pauluzzi will continue to lead the company, which he co-founded in 2014 and which now has more than 100 employees.
The industry veteran previously collaborated with Water Street when he was CEO at PLUS Diagnostics, which was sold to Irving, Texas-based Miraca Life Sciences in 2014. He was also a senior executive with Quest Diagnostics, a Fortune 500 company.
Water Street has invested almost $3 billion in about 37 companies in healthcare sectors including services, pharma and diagnostics, and Garrett has completed more than 40 mergers and acquisitions in his career.
Before working at Beckman, Garrett rose to chief executive of Baxter International’s global lab products unit, and led the 1994 buyout of that business, Dade Behring Inc., which he built into one of the world’s largest clinical diagnostics firms.
Urovant Begins New Trial
Pathnostics is not the only urology player in Irvine.
Irvine’s Urovant Sciences Ltd. (Nasdaq: UROV) is working on new therapies for urologic diseases including overactive bladders, with Vibegron as its lead product.
About 30 million Americans over the age of 40 suffer from overactive bladders with accidental leakage and increased frequency of needing to use the restroom.
It recently began an international Phase III clinical trial called “Courage” to evaluate vibegron for symptoms of overactive bladder in men who are receiving treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). The company said about 4.5 million men in the U.S. are being treated for the condition.
“There is currently no FDA-approved treatment specifically indicated for men with [overactive bladder] who are already on a [benign prostatic hyperplasia] medication,” Chief Medical Officer Cornelia Haag-Molkenteller said.
Based on the discussions with the FDA, the company anticipates this study could serve as the basis for a New Drug Application submission for vibegron in this indication.
The new effort follows results in a separate, wider trial that didn’t satisfy Wall Street.
Its Phase III clinical trial called “Empowur” evaluated vibegron in adults with symptoms of overactive bladder.
Urovant said the study demonstrated the drug has met all seven key secondary endpoints and lauded its potential in a press release but the drug failed to clearly outperform generic medication and Urovant shares fell 28% to below $10 in the two weeks following the news to a $300 million market cap.
Urovant went public in September at $14 a share.
Moves
Sonendo Inc., a Laguna Hills-based dental device maker for root canal treatment, added three execs: Jacqueline Collins, vice president and general counsel; Jane Metcalf, vice president of regulatory affairs and quality; and Sara Wissmueller, vice president of information technology.
Collins spent 15 years as vice president and general counsel at dental implant maker Nobel Biocare North America, a subsidiary of Danaher; Metcalf was vice president of regulatory affairs for neurological medical device maker Reverse Medical Corp. in Irvine; and Wissmueller was vice president of IT for Aliso Viejo software firm Telogis, now part of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).
