Protembis Receives EIB Funding to Support Clinical Program of ProtEmbo Cerebral Embolic Protection System

July 30, 2024—Protembis, a Germany-based medical technology company, announced that the European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing €20 million in venture-debt financing to the company to develop the company’s next-generation ProtEmbo cerebral embolic protection system.

According to the company, ProtEmbo is an intra-aortic filter device that deflects embolic material away from arteries to the brain during left-sided heart procedures including transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), countering risks including stroke and cognitive decline. The funding is intended to support clinical trials, research, development and market access for the ProtEmbo device. ProtEmbo is currently undergoing clinical investigations.

The press release noted that the EIB accord with Protembis is supported by the InvestEU program, which seeks to trigger more than €372 billion in additional investment in new technologies until 2027. Also, the deal is aligned with the InvestEU objective of promoting research, development, and innovation.

Protembis also stated that it completed a €30 million Series B financing round in March 2024 that will advance the pivotal ProtEmbo trial, conducted under an FDA-approved investigational device exemption.

The trial will enroll between 250 and 500 patients undergoing TAVR in Europe and the United States. The study aims to show the superiority of ProtEmbo by randomizing against a hybrid control group. Half of this control-group will receive no protection and half will receive the current predicate cerebral embolic protection system (Sentinel, Boston Scientific), stated the company.