HONG KONG – After a rocky year for many biopharma companies in China hit hard by bribery investigations companies may find some hopeful points in the overall trend of stricter supervision and punishment in the government’s list of priorities for health care enforcement.

SHANGHAI – Privately held Shanxi Taxus Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Shenzhen Forntsea Taxus Industry Capital Management, will acquire majority shares in innovative drug developer Cardium Therapeutics Inc. (CRXM), of San Diego, for $5 million in cash.

With this edition, BioWorld Asia reports on the clinical trial status of drug candidates from: Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, First affiliated Hospital of Henan University of TCM, General Hospital of Nanjing Military Region, Hua Medicine Ltd., Jiangsu Province Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Novartis AG, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital and The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University.

SHANGHAI – In the summer of China’s pharma scandal there was one constant: whistleblowers and their allegations of corruption backed by insider knowledge.

HONG KONG – A recent ruling by the U.S. SEC banning Big Four accounting firms from performing audits linked to China could spell trouble for Chinese biopharmaceutical companies listed in the U.S. The ban is not yet in force pending an appeal.

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc., of Haifa, Israel, was issued Australian Patent No. 2007228341, which covers the method and composition of matter for three-dimensional expansion of placental or adipose stromal cells, Pluristem’s key technology platform.

Alchemia Ltd., of Brisbane, Australia, appointed Thomas Liquard CEO. Liquard, who joined Alchemia in December 2013 as chief operating officer, spent seven years at Pfizer Inc. in various executive roles, including senior director, portfolio development lead emerging markets for the established products portfolio.

Jubilant Biosys Ltd., of Bangalore, India, said it has expanded its 2011 drug discovery alliance with Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, of Beerse, Belgium, part of Johnson & Johnson, that was forged to deliver preclinical candidates to Janssen.

HONG KONG – Stockholm-based Dilafor AB inked a licensing agreement for its tafoxiparin, a drug designed to prevent protracted labor, with Hong Kong’s Lee’s Pharmaceutical Holdings Ltd. (HK:0950).