Novavax Inc. has signed off 6.5 million shares to SK Bioscience Co. Ltd. for an $85 million equity investment from the South Korean pharmaceutical firm, which also wrote off some of Novavax’s manufacturing liabilities, as part of their continuing vaccine alliance. Seongnam-si, South Korea-based SK Bioscience purchased Novavax shares at $13 each, reflecting a 59% premium over the 90-day trading value, to gain a 6.45% stake in the Gaithersburg, Md.-based mRNA vaccine company, an SK Bioscience spokesperson confirmed to BioWorld.

Amarin Corp. plc has chosen Taiwan-based Lotus Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to make headway in Southeast Asia and South Korea for omega-3 fatty acid-based Vazkepa, its icosapent ethyl drug that’s facing increasing generic and pricing pressure in the U.S. and Europe.

Celloram Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of the Seoul, South Korea-based Medpacto Inc., signed a €160 million (US$175.88 million) licensing deal with Genfit SA to develop Celloram’s inflammasome inhibitor, CLM-022, for liver disease.

Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. is selling its North American branded ophthalmic portfolio to Visiox Pharma LLC and Harrow Health Inc. in a move to make its global organization as competitive as possible, Santen told BioWorld.

With Aeon Biopharma Inc. listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on July 24, South Korea’s Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. is seeking new territory for its beleaguered botulinum toxin (BTX) product, Nabota (Jeuveau or ABP-450 in the U.S). Aeon’s move is expected help expand Nabota beyond aesthetic treatment to include medical conditions such as episodic migraines, cervical dystonia and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Sosei Heptares is fulfilling its ambition for growth in the Asia-Pacific region by buying the Japanese and South Korea businesses of Swiss biotech Idorsia Ltd. for ¥65 billion (US$463 million), potentially freeing Idorsia from its struggle to prove its stroke drug, Pivlaz (clazosentan), is effective enough to warrant approval in key Western markets.