Juno Bio, a women’s health company, announced Thursday that it has secured $3.8 million in funding, which it is using to support the opening of its first women’s health sequencing lab.
The company offers an at-home vaginal microbiome test that screens for all bacteria and fungi (microbes) in the vaginal microbiome. Patients receive an analysis of the microbes found in the vagina and the health conditions related to those microbes, such as bacterial vaginosis or yeast infections. In addition, the test can screen for sexually transmitted infections like chlamydia or gonorrhea. Patients are then able to book a free call with one of the company’s coaches to discuss the results and next steps.
The test is available in 46 states and costs $149 for one test or $99 for a test every three months.
Juno Bio’s funding was supported by Ada Ventures, Artesian, Entrepreneur First and Illumina Accelerator.
“Juno Bio is setting a new standard for how vaginal health is understood and managed,” said Check Warner, co-founding partner at Ada Ventures, in a statement. “What they’ve built at this stage, with this level of capital efficiency, is exceptional. We’re proud to support the team as they scale their clinical infrastructure and continue leading innovation in this critically underserved category.”
The funding is supporting the opening of Juno Bio’s first CLIA-certified, women’s health-focused sequencing lab in Oakland, California. Being CLIA-certified means the lab meets federal quality standards for laboratory testing. This allows the company to bring its vaginal microbiome testing in-house, which gives Juno Bio more control over quality, speed, innovation and future research and development, the company told MedCity News.
Data from Juno Bio shows that before using the at-home vaginal microbiome test, 67.5% of its customers had been incorrectly diagnosed, and only 13% had been successfully treated. The company hopes to improve understanding of the vaginal microbiome.
“The vaginal microbiome is still one of the least understood systems in the body at a clinical scale. With our lab, we’re starting to build a measurement standard that clinicians can actually use,” said Leighton Turner, founder and chief science officer of Juno Bio, in a statement. “We believe the level of detail from this kind of testing can meaningfully improve how vaginal healthcare is provided.”
The company’s founder and CEO, Hana Janebdar, noted that Juno Bio’s next chapter is about scaling its work and “expanding access to more actionable care, and continuing to close the gender health gap.”
It’s important to note that Juno Bio isn’t the only company testing the vaginal microbiome. Evvy, based in New York City, also provides an at-home vaginal microbiome test.
Photo: phive2015, Getty Images
