TOKYO – George Yeh, president of Taiwan Liposome Co. Inc. (TLC), told BioWorld Asia that in the coming years more trials for new drugs would take place in Asia, and that cross-country collaborations will help train a new generation of doctors in how to detect the potency and effectivity of treatments yet to reach the market. Read More

SHANGHAI – An unlikely union has been forged between San Francisco-based Unity Biotechnology Inc., a biopharma focused on developing anti-aging drugs to improve healthy life span, and Ascentage Pharma Group, of Taizhou, Zhejiang, a clinical-stage firm focused on apoptosis-targeted oncology drug discovery and development. Read More

HONG KONG – A recent study by scientists at the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences of the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has identified a potential new therapeutic target for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which is the leading cause of central vision loss in the elderly. Read More

HONG KONG – In a first release of its kind, the CFDA posted two lists of drugs set for fast lane approval through the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE). This is the first time drugs by foreign companies have been given priority since the launch of a pilot priority review process proposed earlier this year. The project is part of a strategy to clear a backlog of applications. Read More

HYDERABAD, India – India is strengthening its “track and trace” system for drugs by making it mandatory to put online information about barcodes on the packing of drugs being exported. Read More

Orexigen Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, said that the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has approved Contrave (naltrexone HCI and bupropion HCI extended release) monotherapy for weight management in overweight or obese adult patients. In anticipation of a commercial launch this quarter, the company has shipped an initial order of Contrave tablets to its partner there, Kwang Dong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. Read More

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, named Joseph Fleishaker president, clinical pharmacology and exploratory development. Fleishaker will be located at Astellas’ global headquarters for the medical and development organization in Northbrook, Ill. He will oversee the clinical pharmacology and exploratory development function, which includes all clinical pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, modeling and simulation support for early as well as late-stage development programs. Read More