# Frederick Dotzler

> Frederick Dotzler is a Series B investor at DeNovo Ventures backing Biotechnology. See 12 investments, check sizes, portfolio. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: Angel Investor
- Fund: [DeNovo Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/denovo-ventures)
- Location: Saratoga, United States
- Total investments: 12
- Last investment: Jun 2012
- Lead investor: 25%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fred-dotzler-05686572

Frederick Dotzler is a Series B investor at DeNovo Ventures in Saratoga focused on Biotechnology and Therapeutics. Fred co-founded De Novo in 2000. Prior to De Novo, he was a Managing General Partner of Medicus Venture Partners (“Medicus”), which he founded in 1989. Medicus was an early stage investor in companies such as Anergen, Applied Molecular Evolution, Biosite Diagnostics, Inhale Therapeutic Systems (now Nektar), Omnicell and Tularik. Priorto Medicus, he was a General Partner with Crosspoint Venture Partners for 5 years, where he invested in life sciences companies. Prior to joining Crosspoint, Fred served in executive positions in finance, marketing, sales, manufacturing and business development for companies selling pharmaceuticals (Searle), medical instruments (Merrimack), biotechnology research tools (Millipore), and computers (IBM).Fred earned an MBA from the University of Chicago, a Masters equivalent in Economics from the University of Louvain, Belgium and a BS in Engineering from Iowa State University, where he received a Professional Achievement Citation in Engineering in 2000. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Journal of Private Equity.Fred sits on the boards of Bayhill Therapeutics, Cartilix, HemaQuest, Talima, SenoRx (NASDAQ: SENO) and Vitreo Retinal Technologies. Fred also represented De Novo on investments in Microvention, Oncomed and Renovis.

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Biotechnology | 5 | 42% |
| Therapeutics | 3 | 25% |
| Medical | 2 | 17% |
| Biopharma | 2 | 17% |
| Health Care | 2 | 17% |

7 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Series B | 5 | 42% |
| Series A | 3 | 25% |
| Series C | 1 | 8% |
| Funding Round | 1 | 8% |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Astute Medical | Astute Medical is dedicated to improving the diagnosis of high-risk medical conditions and diseases through the identification and validation of protein biomarkers that can serve as the basis for novel diagnostic tests. The Company's focus is on community and hospital-acquired acute conditions that require rapid diagnosis and risk assessment.The company's current areas of interest include abdominal pain, acute coronary syndromes, cerebrovascular injury, kidney injury and sepsis.Founded in 2007, the company is led by Christopher Hibberd and Paul McPherson, former members of the management at Biosite Incorporated, a leading diagnostics company acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations in 2007 for $1.7 billion. Hibberd served at Biosite for 10 years, most recently as Senior Vice President Corporate Development. Dr. McPherson was at Biosite for 14 years, most recently as Vice President Research and Development. | $40.4M | Series C | Jun 07, 2012 |  |
| Viracta Therapeutics | Viracta is a precision oncology company targeting virus-associated malignancies. Viracta's proprietary investigational drug, nanatinostat, is currently being evaluated in combination with the antiviral agent valganciclovir as an oral combination therapy in a Phase 2 clinical trial for EBV-positive lymphoma. Viracta is pursuing application ofthis inducible synthetic lethality approach in other EBV-associated malignancies, such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, and other virus-related cancers. |  | Series B | Mar 12, 2012 |  |
| Astute Medical | Astute Medical is dedicated to improving the diagnosis of high-risk medical conditions and diseases through the identification and validation of protein biomarkers that can serve as the basis for novel diagnostic tests. The Company's focus is on community and hospital-acquired acute conditions that require rapid diagnosis and risk assessment.The company's current areas of interest include abdominal pain, acute coronary syndromes, cerebrovascular injury, kidney injury and sepsis.Founded in 2007, the company is led by Christopher Hibberd and Paul McPherson, former members of the management at Biosite Incorporated, a leading diagnostics company acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations in 2007 for $1.7 billion. Hibberd served at Biosite for 10 years, most recently as Senior Vice President Corporate Development. Dr. McPherson was at Biosite for 14 years, most recently as Vice President Research and Development. | $13M | Series B | Mar 08, 2011 |  |
| Astute Medical | Astute Medical is dedicated to improving the diagnosis of high-risk medical conditions and diseases through the identification and validation of protein biomarkers that can serve as the basis for novel diagnostic tests. The Company's focus is on community and hospital-acquired acute conditions that require rapid diagnosis and risk assessment.The company's current areas of interest include abdominal pain, acute coronary syndromes, cerebrovascular injury, kidney injury and sepsis.Founded in 2007, the company is led by Christopher Hibberd and Paul McPherson, former members of the management at Biosite Incorporated, a leading diagnostics company acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations in 2007 for $1.7 billion. Hibberd served at Biosite for 10 years, most recently as Senior Vice President Corporate Development. Dr. McPherson was at Biosite for 14 years, most recently as Vice President Research and Development. |  | Series B | May 12, 2010 |  |
| Viracta Therapeutics | Viracta is a precision oncology company targeting virus-associated malignancies. Viracta's proprietary investigational drug, nanatinostat, is currently being evaluated in combination with the antiviral agent valganciclovir as an oral combination therapy in a Phase 2 clinical trial for EBV-positive lymphoma. Viracta is pursuing application ofthis inducible synthetic lethality approach in other EBV-associated malignancies, such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, and other virus-related cancers. |  | Series B | Apr 21, 2010 |  |
| Astute Medical | Astute Medical is dedicated to improving the diagnosis of high-risk medical conditions and diseases through the identification and validation of protein biomarkers that can serve as the basis for novel diagnostic tests. The Company's focus is on community and hospital-acquired acute conditions that require rapid diagnosis and risk assessment.The company's current areas of interest include abdominal pain, acute coronary syndromes, cerebrovascular injury, kidney injury and sepsis.Founded in 2007, the company is led by Christopher Hibberd and Paul McPherson, former members of the management at Biosite Incorporated, a leading diagnostics company acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations in 2007 for $1.7 billion. Hibberd served at Biosite for 10 years, most recently as Senior Vice President Corporate Development. Dr. McPherson was at Biosite for 14 years, most recently as Vice President Research and Development. |  | Series A | May 01, 2008 |  |
| Viracta Therapeutics | Viracta is a precision oncology company targeting virus-associated malignancies. Viracta's proprietary investigational drug, nanatinostat, is currently being evaluated in combination with the antiviral agent valganciclovir as an oral combination therapy in a Phase 2 clinical trial for EBV-positive lymphoma. Viracta is pursuing application ofthis inducible synthetic lethality approach in other EBV-associated malignancies, such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, and other virus-related cancers. |  | Series A | Nov 02, 2007 |  |
| Talima Therapeutics | Talima Therapeutics is an emerging drug delivery company dedicated to the development of novel products that increase patient choice and improve quality of life. With a unique approach to therapy, we design customized drug-delivery systems that optimize the local therapeutic performance and reduce the undesired systemic side effects enabling us toaddress unmet needs or underserved markets. We foster a collaborative environment and strive for excellence internally and with our partners. Our lead product is currently in Phase I/II clinical testing for the treatment of onychomycosis, a fungal disease of the nails and we are in the process of planning its pivotal trials. |  | Series B | May 29, 2007 |  |
| Bayhill Therapeutics | Bayhill Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing therapeutics for autoimmune diseases. The company uses its therapeutic BHT-DNA platform to develop a pipeline of treatment candidates for autoimmune diseases. Its products in clinical pipeline include BHT-3021, which is in PhaseI/II clinical trial for reducing or eliminating the immune system’s attack on the pancreas; BHT-3009, which completed its Phase II trial for the treatment of multiple sclerosis; and BHT-3034, which is in preclinical studies for the treatment of myasthenia gravis. The company was formerly known as Tolerion, Inc. and changed its name to Bayhill Therapeutics, Inc. in November 2002. Bayhill Therapeutics, Inc. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. | $15.8M |  | Apr 11, 2006 |  |
| Cartilix | Cartilix develops and commercializes biomaterials to repair damaged tissues in articular joints and other applications. It focuses on a technology for cartilage filling in regenerative medicine. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in Foster City, California. |  | Series B | Mar 01, 2006 |  |

10 of 12 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Lilly Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/lilly-ventures) — VC Fund, 5 deals together
- [Delphi Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/delphi-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Forward Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/forward-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/johnson-johnson-development-corporation) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Aberdare Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/aberdare-ventures) — VC Fund, 2 deals together
- [Montreux Equity Partners](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/montreaux-equity-partners) — VC Fund, 2 deals together

## About DeNovo Ventures

VC Fund · Saratoga, United States

DeNovo Ventures was formed in 2000 by seasoned investors and experienced medical device entrepreneurs who sought to share the lessons learned from a history of successful investing and building successful companies. They believed that their unique combination of skills and perspectives could help entrepreneurs to build companies which would havesignificant clinical impact and generate superior returns. Seven years later, this belief continues to hold true, demonstrated by investment success in selected medical device and biotechnology companies. With $650 million under management, De Novo has made more than 40 investments in medical devices and biotechnology across three funds. They invest in all stages of enterprise development and growth – from early stage to late stage. The unique background of leading companies as entrepreneurs and operating executives from start to exit enables us to advise entrepreneurs and management teams over the full life cycle of the company.

5 contacts available at DeNovo Ventures.

| Name | Title | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Richard Ferrari | Co - Founder & Managing Director | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/richard-ferrari |
| David M. Mauney | co-founder and Managing Director | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/david-m-mauney |
| Frederick Dotzler | Managing Director | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/frederick-dotzler |
| Jay Watkins | Managing Director | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/jay-watkins |
| Joe Mandato | Managing Director | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/joe-mandato |

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## FAQ

### What does Frederick Dotzler invest in?

Frederick Dotzler invests primarily in Biotechnology, Therapeutics and Medical startups, most often at Series B and Series A stage. Most of the 12 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### When did Frederick Dotzler last invest?

The most recent investment recorded for Frederick Dotzler closed in Jun 2012. Shizune tracks 12 investments in total for this profile, including round sizes, stages and portfolio companies, all sourced from confirmed public funding rounds and refreshed monthly.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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