HONG KONG – Dipping a rather large toe into the diabetes market, Chinese biopharmaceutical company 3Sbio Inc. (HKEX:1530) will pay as much as $100 million for exclusive rights to market two of Astrazeneca plc's diabetes products in China. Read More
SHANGHAI – Hua Medicine Ltd. released the top-line results from the phase II trial of HMS5552, a fourth-generation glucokinase activator (GKA) used as a single drug to treat type 2 diabetes patients in China. The Shanghai-based biotech said the study shows statistically significant efficacy data, as well as an excellent tolerability and safety profile, with low risk of hypoglycemia or other side effects common in diabetes treatments. Read More
PERTH, Australia – With another FDA approval in hand for its regenerative tissue portfolio, Brisbane, Australia-based Admedus Ltd. said it expects to become profitable in the next 12 to 18 months. The FDA cleared Vascucel for marketing on Oct. 17, and the company expects to launch the collagen scaffold for repairing vascular tissue in November. Read More
HONG KONG – A Chinese study has for the first time provided preclinical proof of concept that the targeting of tyrosine protein 6 (PTK6), also known as breast tumor kinase (BRK), with a small-molecule kinase inhibitor may represent a promising new breast cancer treatment strategy. Read More
SHANGHAI – China's startup biotech scene has gained a new entrant: Transthera Biosciences Co. Ltd., of Nanjing, Jiangsu. Transthera has received $10 million, from a group of investors led by Morningside Ventures, to discover and develop new chemical entities (NCEs) for oncology, cardiovascular diseases and other indications. Read More
HONG KONG – Aspiring South Korean pharmaceutical companies had a reality check when Hanmi Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. faced an abrupt end in its license deal with German pharma giant Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH. Read More
TOKYO – China Resources Pharmaceutical Group (CR Pharma) launched an IPO roadshow in Hong Kong as it looks to raise as much as $2 billion in capital. The company is a part of China Resources Holdings, a state-owned Chinese conglomerate with a wide distribution network across the world's most populous nation. Read More