HONG KONG – A research team at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has developed a fully automated, low-cost and rapid microrobotic diagnostic system that can be used with multiple pathogens, including COVID-19. The system works by integrating fluorescent microrobots with an external magnetic actuation system to detect pathogens in patient samples.

PERTH, Australia – Researchers at the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Queensland have developed a way of testing whether COVID-19 patients’ immune systems are gearing up to fight the virus that causes the disease.

HONG KONG – Big pharma and venture capital firms are increasingly focused on early-stage companies and digital solutions, judging by the interest shown by participants at Phar-East 2020. Much of the talk during the third and final day of the virtual conference that started Dec. 8 was focused on the business side of the health care space, and the undertones were definitely bullish.

PERTH, Australia – Med-tech company Control Bionics began trading on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX:CBL) Dec. 7 in an IPO that saw the company raise AU$15 million (US$11.25 million). Melbourne-headquartered Control Bionics develops assistive technologies (AT) that allow people with severe disabilities to communicate and control electronic devices using electromyography (EMG).

HONG KONG – Partnerships are reshaping the pharmaceutical industry across Asia, said speakers during day two of the Phar-East 2020 virtual conference. While industry has “tended to have a go-at-it-alone approach,” doing all its discovery, development and commercialization work in-house, “nothing ever came in or out. I think that’s really changed in recent years,” said Kazia Therapeutics Ltd. CEO James Garner.

NEW DELHI – Recent changes to India’s rules on medical devices have evoked mixed reaction among industry and legal experts with concerns over their impact on patenting of innovations tinged with a welcome reception of a new clause for mandatory registration and licensing of medical devices in the country to improve adherence to quality requirements. 

HONG KONG – New approaches to trials, digitalization and the effective use of advance technologies like artificial intelligence are reshaping how clinical trials are conducted, drugs are discovered, and new devices are developed, said participants at the Asia-focused Phar-East 2020 conference on Dec. 8.

PERTH, Australia – Australia's Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is requiring manufacturers of permanently implantable devices to provide patient implant cards and consumer device leaflets with their devices, beginning Dec. 1. New implantable devices will need to comply by Dec. 1, 2020, and existing implantable devices will have until Dec. 1, 2021, to comply.

An international study led by Nanyang Technological University in Singapore has designed and synthesized broad-spectrum antimicrobial polymers (AMPs) and demonstrated the safety and efficacy of two such agents against multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in mouse models of sepsis.

PERTH, Australia – Australia’s Therapeutic Good Administration (TGA) has unveiled its final regulatory requirements for personalized medical devices, including 3D-printed devices, that go into effect on Feb. 25, 2021. Under the previous framework, custom-made medical devices were exempt from the requirement to be included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG).