Prenatal testing company Natera raises $20M

Gene Security Network Inc., a Redwood City-based preconception and prenatal genetic testing company, completed a $20 million financing round and changed its name to Natera Inc.
Lightspeed Venture Partners of Menlo Park led the round, Natera said Friday, joined by Claremont Creek Ventures of Oakland and Sequoia Capital of Menlo Park.
The cash will help Natera launch a non-invasive prenatal diagnostic test for Down syndrome and other genetic conditions as well as allow it to expand a key National Institutes of Health-funded clinical trial.

Technology births boom in prenatal testing

Fresh guidelines for prenatal testing, coupled with fast-improving technology, promises to give expectant parents an unprecedented look at their child’s development.
That could mean a hot new area of revenue for a handful of Bay Area companies working on a new generation of prenatal screening tests, but they’re in a race that is moving faster than baby steps.