Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, said it obtained marketing approval of oral androgen receptor signaling inhibitor Xtandi (enzalutamide) for the treatment of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer in Japan. Xtandi is approved in the U.S. and Europe and is being jointly developed and commercialized by Medivation Inc., of San Francisco. Under the companies’ deal, Medivation is entitled to a $15 million milestone payment upon Japanese approval. (See BioWorld Today, Oct. 28, 2009.) Read More

HONG KONG – With a plan to build its own version of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), Japan is looking to expand the interaction and cooperation between three major ministries and get the most out of the government’s ¥320 billion (US$3 billion) in biological and biomedical research spending. Read More

SHANGHAI – Astrazeneca plc, of London, has invested continuously in China’s R&D capabilities over the past seven years and shows no signs of letting up. The latest deal with the newly minted Nephrology and Urology Center, part of the Shenzhen University Health Science Center, will focus on preclinical research for diabetic nephropathy, the damage done to kidneys in late-stage diabetes. Read More

SHANGHAI – Hainan Haiyao Co. Ltd., of Haikou, China, revealed in a regulatory filing that is has some cash to spend and is seeking to buy its way into some new opportunities, with biotechs at the top of its list. Read More

HONG KONG – A Hong Kong-based biotechnology company that specializes in in-licensing products for marketing in China will work with a partner in South Korea and one in Europe in a late-stage clinical development program for the oncolytic immunotherapy Pexa-Vec (JX-594/TG6006). Read More