The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has developed new side-hole polymer optical fiber sensors, which can be used in multiple medical treatments without the drawbacks of other optical fibers used in the past. The biocompatible plastic sensors are humidity insensitive, supple and shatter-resistant. This means they can be used in various medical settings, ranging from surgical instrumentation, diagnostics to imaging equipment and sensor-based medical devices.

A research team from the National University Health System (NUHS) was awarded a translational grant of S$4.9 million (US$3.6 million) from the National Research Foundation Singapore Central Gap Fund to further develop its personalized mitral valve bioprosthesis. Currently, around 500 patients in Singapore and more than 1 million around the world require mitral valve surgery annually.

SD Biosensor Inc. made a splash in its KOSPI board debut on July 16, raising a total ₩776.4 billion (US$679.26 million). The company will now use the funds to mass-produce and promote the company’s diagnostic machines for various indications, including COVID-19.

South Korea plans to create a bio data dam, a step toward generating the necessary industrial ecosystem in the country’s bid to become one of the top seven players in the global medical device market by 2025.

Neuro- and peripheral-vascular interventional med-tech developer Zylox-Tonbridge Medical Technology Co. Ltd. raised HK$2.56 billion (US$329 million) in Hong Kong on July 5 via an IPO that will support the development and commercialization of its core products.

New research suggests that ultraviolet (UV) light that operates at lower bandwidth than what currently exists in the market could be just as useful in inactivating the SARS-CoV-2 virus with less harmful effects on skin cells. Joint research by Asahi Kasei Corp. and Nara Medical University confirmed that 226 nanometer ultraviolet-C (UVC) LEDs can inactivate the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 while having less effect on animal skin cells compared to 270 nm UVC LEDs.

PERTH, Australia – Rapid point-of-care (POC) diagnostics company Lumos Diagnostics Holdings Ltd. completed a A$63 million (US$47.44 million) initial public offering (IPO) on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on July 5. “The funds raised will support U.S. commercialization of Febridx, to build our pipeline and to expand our operations so that we have the facilities and infrastructure in place to do automated assembly and manufacturing,” Lumos Diagnostics CEO Rob Sambursky told BioWorld.

Patent protection in China has been a point of concern for device makers for some time, but so has patent piracy. The Peoples Republic of China has issued some amendments to its patent law that allow for adjustments and extensions to the term of a patent, changes that are a welcome bit of news for companies in the life sciences.

PERTH, Australia – With FDA approval of its Guardian system to detect early heart attacks, Angel Medical Systems Inc. (Angelmed) will launch the device in the next six weeks in the U.S., and partner Hydrix Ltd. will launch the devices in eight Asia Pacific markets.

KT Corp. took its first step into the digital therapies space by entering into an agreement with Neurosigma Inc. to develop electronic therapies to treat neurological and neuropsychological disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression and epilepsy. KT will support the design and development of Neurosigma’s next-generation versions of external trigeminal nerve stimulation (eTNS) products that incorporate artificial intelligence (AI), big data and cloud capabilities.