HONG KONG – South Korean AI-based biotech Azoth Bio Inc., of Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do, and biopharmaceutical venture Wellmarker Bio Co. Ltd., based in Seoul, have signed a memorandum of understanding for cancer drug R&D and commercialization. Under the agreement, the two entities will use Azoth's AI-powered platform to develop Wellmarker's cancer treatment candidates.

A Chinese study has identified small-molecule compounds that can selectively reduce levels of the mutant Huntingtin (HTT) protein involved in the pathogenesis of Huntington's disease (HD), and possibly other neurodegenerative diseases involving mutant protein accumulation.

HONG KONG – Indonesian regulators have introduced a medical device risk classification system, as part of a harmonization of regulations across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. The 'Sistem Klasifikasi Risiko Alat Kesehatan' system, known by the acronym Siklara, takes its cues from the ASEAN Medical Device Directive (AMDD).

HONG KONG – One of South Korea's biggest pharmaceutical companies by market capitalization, GC Pharma Corp., based in Yong-in, Gyeonggi-do, and the Cambridge, Mass.-based U.S. biotech Vaxess Technologies Inc., have partnered to globally commercialize a flu vaccine patch based on Vaxess' Mimix Smart Release Patch technology.

HONG KONG – South Korea's major pharmaceutical company GC Pharma Corp., based in Yong-in, Gyeonggi-do, and the Cambridge, Mass.-based U.S. biotech Vaxess Technologies Inc., have partnered to globally commercialize a flu vaccine patch based on Vaxess' Mimix Smart Release Patch technology. The patch is designed to deliver medicines and vaccines through silk microneedles that dissolve at a precise rate.

Australian scientists have discovered promising new candidate analgesic molecules derived from a Penicillium fungus, which represents a promising resource for the development of safer new analgesics, they reported in the Oct. 14, 2019, edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

BEIJING – Cancer and autoimmune specialist Innocare Pharma Ltd., of Beijing, is seeking a pre-revenue listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) to raise capital to advance its BTK inhibitor, ICP-022, to an NDA filing in China by the end of this year.

HONG KONG – South Korea's Helixmith Co. Ltd. has announced the results of a phase III trial extension testing VM-202 (donaperminogene seltoplasmid), a regenerative plasmid DNA gene therapy candidate, in diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN).

HONG KONG – South Korea's biopharmaceutical venture Genome & Co. Ltd. recently secured KRW30.2 billion (US$25.2 million) in series C investment with an IPO and global clinical trial plans for next year.