China’s National Medical Products Administration granted conditional approval two Chinese-developed COVID-19 vaccines in less than 24 hours on Feb. 25. One of the vaccines approved was developed by Tianjin-based Cansino Biologics Inc., and the other by China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) through its Wuhan Institute of Biological Products subsidiary. Read More
Liver disease specialist Ascletis Pharma Inc. said its nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)-focused subsidiary, Gannex Pharma Co. Ltd., will start global development of its oral THR-β agonist, ASC-41, after it obtained an IND approval from the FDA based on positive phase I data generated in China. Read More
NEW DELHI – Significant disruptions to supplies of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) from China caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have led India to fundamentally rethink its supply chains and the structure of its pharmaceutical industry, according to industry executives and consultants. Read More
PERTH, Australia – Sydney-based Kazia Therapeutics Ltd. has out-licensed its ovarian cancer drug, Cantrixil (TRX-E-002-1), to Sweden’s Oasmia Pharmaceutical AB in a deal worth up to $46 million.
Oasmia will pay $4 million up front, and development milestones worth up to $42 million and double-digit sales royalties. Read More
Eight months after Beijing-based Yisheng Biopharma Co. Ltd. unveiled its recombinant protein vaccine candidate for COVID-19, YS-SC2-010, the company raised $130 million in a series B round to pave way for the vaccine to enter clinical trials in the second quarter of this year, the company’s CEO David Shao told BioWorld. Read More
HONG KONG – Daejeon, South Korea-based Curocell Inc. has received the first IND approval for a CAR T therapy in South Korea from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). Read More
In the public mind, fat and unhealthy are more or less synonymous. But reality is more complicated, as reality often is. Even among individuals with a BMI of 30 or higher, somewhere between 15% and 45% have metabolism typical of much lower-weight individuals. Read More
Scientists, despite their best efforts, have not been able to identify a way to inhibit the oncoprotein Myc. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli, though, has apparently figured it out. In the Feb. 11, 2021, online issue of Nature Biotechnology, researchers reported that an UPEC-produced protease depleted cellular Myc and improved survival in mouse models of bladder and colon cancer. Read More
Biopharma happenings in Asia-Pacific, such as deals and partnerships, grants, preclinical data and other news in brief, including: Allarity, Aridis, Astellas, Beigene, Beijing Tide, Biocardia, Canbridge, Claritas, Daiichi Sankyo, Eli Lilly, ERS Genomics, Essa, FCC Horiuchi, Florica, G+FLAS Life Sciences, Generex, Genscript Probio, Graviton, Hitgen, Insilico Medicine, Moderna, Novartis, Pfizer, Pierre Fabre, Puma, Recce, Sunrock, UCB, Uppthera. Read More
Regulatory snapshots, including drug submissions and approvals, clinical trial approvals and other regulatory decisions and designations in Asia-Pacific, including: Antengene, Astrazeneca, Biontech, Cansino, Carsgen, Gannex, GC, Harbour Biomed, Iaso, Idorsia, Innovent, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Qurebio, RDIF, Regeneron, Roche, Sciwind, Very, Wuhan Institute of Biological Products. Read More
The latest global regulatory news, changes and updates affecting biopharma in Asia, including: FDA, Gilead Sciences, Therapeutic Goods Administration, World Health Organization. Read More
