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Gameto gets $17M in Insight Partners-led funding

Sarah Pringle
Sep 15, 2022
Illustration of a female symbol and a red cross merged together.

Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios

Gameto, a biotech startup focused on ovarian longevity and related reproductive issues, has raked in $17 million in funding led by Insight Partners.

Why it matters: Menopause, despite being linked to many health problems, has historically lacked attention and investment. Gameto is one of a few upstarts tackling the health and fertility consequences of ovarian aging, as well as realities like the long, pricey IVF and egg freezing process.

Details: Investors in the Insight-led round include Future Ventures, Arcadia Investment Partners, Bold Capital Partners, Plum Alley, Myelin VC, TA Ventures, Gaingels, Korify Capital, and other existing investors.

  • The capital infusion brings Gameto's total funding to date to $40 million.

Flashback: Gameto collected $23 million in Series A funding in January, led by Future Ventures.

Zoom in: Gameto, with headquarters in New York and Madrid, has a few programs in the works...

  • Fertilo, a biologic for egg maturation, is currently in preclinical development. It aims to improve the safety and efficacy of IVF and egg freezing via a reduction in hormonal injections.
  • Upcoming programs include Deovo, focused on drug discovery for ovarian aging; and Ameno, which aims to address the health consequences of primary ovarian insufficiency and menopause.

Be smart: Loss of ovarian function and menopause heighten the risk of various conditions, including heart disease, loss of bone density, immune dysfunction, along with declines in neurocognitive health.

State of play: A small crop of biotechs have garnered VC investment in recent years to support drug development around a long-overlooked source of many other women's health issues.

  • Oviva Therapeutics, a biotech startup focused on preventing menopause, scored $11.5 million in seed funding in May from Cambrian Biopharma.
  • Celmatix, of a similar vein, has collected $83 million to date, per PitchBook, last raising $6.5 million in Series A funding in 2019 from Evotec, Topspin Venture and Life Science Innovation Fund.
  • Other women's health- or fertility-focused biotech startups include Ivy Natal, Conception and JumpStart Fertility.
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