Lantis Laser Inc. announced it will merge with Perio-Imaging Inc., a private New York-based company that makes an ultrasonographic periodontal probe system. The merger would be an all-stock transaction. The name of the new company will be announced at the closing. Lantis said the combined company should be more attractive to investors, so the product portfolio can be advanced to commercialization. One of the conditions for closing is that the required funding for the product development program is raised. Lantis Laser's product focus is on detection of early, later and hidden decay and microstructural defects in teeth using modalities that are light-based and do not emit potentially harmful radiation. The company has licensed rights to optical coherence tomography (OCT) from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and LightLab Imaging, and it has acquired rights to near-infrared transillumination imaging technology for applications in the dental field from the University of California. Its OCT has been successfully used in ophthalmology for many years, and recently FDA clearance for cardiovascular imaging was granted to a Lantis Laser licensor. Lantis has also licensed MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) scanning technology from the University of Florida. Perio-Imaging developed its novel ultrasound device, the Perio-Imager, for the early detection of periodontal disease. Not only is periodontal disease a major cause of tooth loss but it has also been linked to systemic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and pancreatic cancer. The Perio-Imager, which is in the final stages of development, is intended to be a noncontact, painless system that provides an accurate measurement of periodontal pocket depths, for early detection of periodontal disease, Lantis said. For more information, visit: www.lantislaser.com