SUZHOU, China – The China growth story continues to buoy the life science industry, even in the face of challenging headwinds of change. That was the message from PwC experts who extensively surveyed executives and innovators across device, service, venture capital and pharma, many of whom were in the room for the recent collegial ChinaBio Leadership Retreat in Changshu. Read More

SEOUL, South Korea – South Korean companies focused on research and development of stem cell therapy products are working hard to put the country back into a position of global leadership, even after setbacks in the last decade that held back research for years. Read More

From a purely scientific standpoint, the news about the Ebola outbreak has been encouraging. New genomic technologies enable unprecedented surveillance of the virus. There are drugs and vaccines in clinical trials. And in response to the urgency of the crisis, both drugmakers and regulatory agencies are making efforts to expedite the process of getting weapons against Ebola through the regulatory process and into the field, where they are needed. Read More

HONG KONG – Chinese researchers have demonstrated that grafted neural stem cells directly release dopamine into the damaged striata of rat brains in vivo and partially rescued a model of Parkinson's disease (PD), providing proof of concept for the feasibility of that technique for treating PD in humans. Read More

SEOUL, South Korea – Vaccine makers in Asian emerging markets are stepping up their development efforts, while researchers are increasingly helping developing countries troubled by neglected diseases by partnering with domestic manufactures, often in neighboring countries. Read More

Twi Pharmaceuticals Inc., of Taipei, Taiwan, said its subsidiary, Twi Biotechnology Inc., gained FDA orphan drug status for AC-201, a drug it is developing for rare genetic connective tissue disorder epidermolysis bullosa, a pediatric disorder that leaves children with fragile skin that blisters and tears from friction or trauma. Read More