Biomedical start-up AxoGen, Inc. develops products that allow surgeons to repair and regenerate peripheral nerves; the company's first commercial product, AvanceTM Nerve Graft, is a natural biological solution and the market's first treatment for the most severe, long-gap nerve injuries.
Principal inventor David Muir, Ph.D., a world-leader in nerve regeneration and repair research and development, is a joint professor of neuroscience and pediatrics at the University of Florida's McKnight Brain Institute.
Chairman, CEO, and AxoGen co-founder Jamie Grooms has extensive executive leadership experience launching, growing and managing biotechnology companies such as Regeneration Technologies (Nasdaq: RTIX), which he led through initial venture capital fundraising and an initial public offering, raising $75 million in proceeds.
UF's Office of Technology Licensing introduced Dr. Muir and his technologies to Mr. Grooms and AxoGen was formed in 2003. As of late 2006, the company had netted $100,000 in funding from angel investors, and an additional $7.75 million from venture capital firms, Accuitive Medical Ventures in Atlanta, Cardinal Partners in Princeton, New Jersey, and De Novo Ventures in Menlo Park, California.