Ensoma Inc., a gene therapy startup working to drastically simplify the production and delivery of genomic medicines, announced itself Feb. 11 with a $70 million series A financing plus a strategic collaboration with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., which licensed vectors from the company for up to five rare disease targets in a deal that could deliver as much as $1.25 billion in potential payouts. Ensoma's co-founder and seed investor, 5AM Ventures, led the financing. Takeda took a $10 million equity stake as part of the round.

Patient-centered predictive health company Sema4 said Wednesday it has inked a merger agreement with CM Life Sciences, a special purpose acquisition company led by Casdin Capital and Corvex Management. Upon closing, CM Life Sciences will be renamed and its common stock listed on the Nasdaq global market under a name and ticker symbol yet to be announced.

Ascendum Capital, a health care-focused investment platform founded in 2020, acquired the majority of the shares of a developer of a disposable robotic system designed to navigate tricky vascular passages for an undisclosed amount. Yehuda, Israel-based Endoways Ltd. developed the technology in the Medx Xelerator and will move to Dinova Medtech’s Israeli incubator until its catheter laboratory-focused robot launches for commercial use.

Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. continued its transformation, disclosing Friday that it will spin off its spine and dental businesses into a separate, publicly traded company. The move will enable the independent company, identified as Newco, to pursue strategies and growth in spine and dental solutions that have not been a major focus for Zimmer Biomet, while allowing the latter to focus on high-growth orthopedic segments.

HONG KONG – Earlysense Ltd. has sold a contact-free continuous monitoring technology to global med-tech provider Hillrom Holdings Inc. Ramat Gan, Israel-based Earlysense will receive licensing for all intellectual property and technology sold to Chicago-based Hillrom for use outside the hospital along with $30 million in cash, commercial milestone payments and a portion of Hillrom's equity investment

PERTH, Australia – Wellington, New Zealand-headquartered Volpara Health Technologies Ltd. has acquired Boston-based CRA Health LLC for $18 million up front and an additional $4 million to be paid over the next 18 months in earnouts. Volpara’s digital health solutions use imaging and artificial intelligence (AI) for early detection of breast cancer. The company’s clinical functions for screening clinics provide feedback on breast density, compression, dose, and quality, while its enterprise-wide practice software management helps with productivity, compliance, reimbursement and patient tracking.