HONG KONG – Aprinoia Therapeutics Inc. is poised to start phase III clinical trials for its positron emission tomography (PET) imaging tracer 18F-APN-1607 in China, after receiving the green light from the National Medical Products Administration.

PERTH, Australia – During the COVID-19 pandemic, 90% of Australia’s clinical trials were put on hold, and the market cap of biotech and medical device companies on the Australian Securities Exchange dropped 5% to AU$11 billion (US$7.78 billion), according to a recent report by Australia’s Medical Technologies and Pharmaceuticals Industry Growth Centre.

HONG KONG – Novartis AG was cited during the recent 2020 KoNECT-MOHW-MFDS International Conference as an example of a biopharma firm staying ahead of the artificial intelligence curve.

PERTH, Australia – Melbourne-based Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. has submitted its first new drug application to the FDA for TLX591-CDx, a radiopharmaceutical targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) for imaging prostate cancer using positron emission tomography (PET).

The BioWorld Artificial Intelligence price-weighted index, which includes biopharmaceutical companies, medical devices and health care services companies, has climbed in value and is currently up almost 37% year-to-date.

HONG KONG – Incheon, South Korea-based Celltrion Inc. will start manufacturing its COVID-19 treatment for clinical trials and commercial distribution, even though it’s only reached phase I. The phase I trials testing the in-house antiviral antibody treatment CT-P59 began on July 17, the same day the company received approval from Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) for its investigational new drug application on the back of positive preclinical results.

Research focused on finding viable solutions to counter the COVID-19 pandemic continues at an explosive pace with a total of 588 potential therapeutics and vaccines at the forefront of scientific efforts launched by industry, academia and government.

Countries and health care providers should hope for the best but prepare for the worst as a resurgence of COVID-19 is expected in the fall, just as the influenza season hits.

Fidget spinners are hand-held toys based on a roller bearing and three weighted lobes, which can spin freely, creating centrifugal force when activated manually.

LONDON – Support is growing for human challenge trials in COVID-19 to be approved in order to speed up development of effective vaccines against the pandemic infection. The World Health Organization (WHO) has just released guidelines for assessing the ethical acceptability, saying such trials would allow for more rapid and standardized testing, accelerating development and enabling candidates to be prioritized.