Two U.S. federal government departments recently issued a series of guidelines for their handling of mergers and acquisitions in a draft that has provoked both support and opposition from observers. Barry Nigro of the George Washington University School of Law said he is concerned that the presumption that a transaction is necessarily anticompetitive will prompt litigation over that presumption and thus bog down the process of reviewing these transactions.

Ibex Medical Analytics Ltd. closed a $55 million series C financing round that will allow the company to expand its footprint in the U.S. to meet the increasing demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-powered diagnostic solutions. Ibex has developed the Galen platform which offers AI solutions that allow pathologists to accurately and rapidly detect and diagnose cancer. The company also reported the launch of Galen Breast HER2, a new software which will play a critical role in helping oncologists identify effective therapies for breast cancer patients.

Laborie Medical Technologies Inc. continued a string of recent deals with an agreement to acquire Urotronic Inc. for $255 million cash up front with an additional $345 million in payments contingent on meeting specified commercial and reimbursement milestones. Laborie already held a minority interest in the manufacturer of the Optilume drug-coated balloon technology for treatment of urethral strictures and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Pacira Cryotech Inc. reported the filing of a patent for a hand-held cryogenic treatment system with a probe configured to apply a cryogenic therapy to one or more nerves, such as the nerves of the stellate ganglion and autonomic tissue peripheral to the stellate ganglion.