When it comes to leveling the playing field for foreign-based biopharma and medical device companies, China has made a lot of promises, but delivering on those promises is what matters. Throughout its annual assessment for Congress of China’s commitment to World Trade Organization principles, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) noted the many promises China has made over the years that have yet to be kept.

In what is claimed as the first co-authored research between regulatory scientists at the U.S. FDA and a commercial manufacturer of organ-on-a-chip devices, CN Bio's Physiomimix system is shown to perform better than the current standard in vitro liver toxicity tests. In addition to maintaining its function for longer than 2D hepatocyte cultures or 3D spheroids, Physiomimix was found to reproducibly assess toxicity, metabolism and intracellular accumulation of drugs.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded a contract for validation of lab-developed tests (LDTs) for the pandemic to a private company, a move that was apparently an effort to address the resource crunch at the U.S.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has inked a definitive agreement to acquire Mesa Biotech Inc., a privately held molecular diagnostics company with a point-of-care (POC) platform, for approximately $450 million in cash. The scientific instruments and testing giant said it will pay an additional $100 million in cash upon the completion of certain milestones. The planned acquisition will expand Thermo Fisher’s franchise of diagnostic test options with a novel platform that enables nucleic acid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing at the point of care.

Royal Philips NV will close on its $635 million acquisition of Capsule Technologies Inc. in the first quarter of 2021, continuing the expansion of the Dutch company's remote monitoring capabilities. Capsule's Medical Device Information Platform integrates nearly all medical devices used in hospitals with electronic health records in a vendor-neutral system. The deal has already received approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice.

Johnson & Johnson has been looking to make a big splash in robotics. Now, its Depuy Synthes unit has made progress on this front, gaining U.S. FDA clearance for the Velys robotic-assisted solution designed for use with the Attune total knee system. The solution aims to help simplify surgeons’ existing workflow around total knee replacement.

PERTH, Australia – The majority of medical device and biopharma industry respondents agreed that Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) responded effectively to COVID-19, but they want to see the agency improve its processes to act faster and with more clarity, according to the TGA’s annual stakeholder survey.