The latest approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Luxturna, a new gene therapy to treat hereditary retinal degeneration, will prompt other gene therapies to commercialize, an analyst said.“Starting with Luxturna, the gene therapies market will open,” said Seo Keun-hee, an analyst at KB Securities, in a recent report on global R&D trends in 2018.Developed by Spark Therape
A local firm has won a patent in testing fetal sex chromosome abnormalities using next-generation sequencing (NGS), amid a rise in the number of first-time mothers aged over 35.The Korean Intellectual Property Office registered the patent for Eone Diagnomics Genome Center (EDGC)’s “new method in screening a fetus’ sex and sex chromosome abnormalities in various platforms” as of Jan. 5. The res
Amid growing concerns over biological terrorism with North Korea’s reported anthrax tests, a South Korean biotech venture has unveiled, only to the authorities, the results of its study on an anthrax antibodies therapy treating anthrax infection.Anthrax infection is caused by Bacillus anthracis, a pathogenic organism that is fatal to humans and animals. Currently, anthrax infection treatments
Venture capital investment in the local biomedical sector declined by 20 percent in 2017 from a year earlier, industry data showed Thursday. Venture capital refers to a financing by companies or funds to emerging firms with high growth potential.According to data from the Korean Venture Capital Association, the volume of venture capital’s new investment in the biotechnology and medical sector
In the South Korean stock market, biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical firms are recognized as having policy-backed stocks, as former and incumbent governments have aggressively pushed the growth of biotech and pharmaceutical industries as new growth engines.However, some investors have also been warning against the risk of bubbles in the two sectors, as volatile fluctuations of stock prices a
Kolon Life Science’s shares plummeted by 15 percent on Wednesday from the previous day, apparently hurt by a Japanese firm’s notice that it would rescind the technology import deal of Invossa, a cell-mediated gene therapy for osteoarthritis.Compared to a 3 percent increase on the news of the tech export deal, the 15 percent fall was deemed a big plunge.Analysts attributed the sudden drop o
Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma notified Kolon Life Science that the Japanese drugmaker would rescind the technology import deal of Invossa, a cell-mediated gene therapy for osteoarthritis.The Korean biotech company said in a public regulatory filing that it received the Japanese company’s request to return 2.5 billion yen (27.3 billion won) of contract money, along with the cancellation of the deal.
As Takeda Pharmaceuticals Korea is about to release its angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB)-related hypertension drug Edarbi next year, industry officials are watching whether the drug will benefit from the new U.S. guidelines for hypertension. Dong-A ST, which clinched a marketing deal with Takeda Korea, emphasized the importance of active management of blood pressure in a news conference
The labor union of Boehringer Ingelheim Korea said the company’s recent announcement of an early retirement program for cardiovascular diseases department violated collective bargaining rules, threatening to take legal actions against the management.The Korean unit of the German pharmaceutical firm announced the plan for the early retirement program on 49 employees at the cardiovascular diseas
Celltrion, which recently obtained Europe’s approval for breast cancer treatment antibody biologic drug Herzuma (trastuzumab), is expected to see an annual revenue exceeding 3 trillion won ($2.76 billion) in 2022, an analyst said Monday.Last Friday, the company received a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency (EMA)’s Medical Products for Human Use (CHMP) for Herzuma. The analyst
Yuhan Corp.’s combination of chemotherapy with immunotherapy YH24931 has stronger efficacy than a single use of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) inhibitors, according to the result of a non-clinical trial.YH24931, currently at the non-clinical trial stage, is expected to enter a phase 1 clinical trial next year.YH24931 works as an anti-tumor therapy as it prompts the movement of dendritic
Over-the-counter drugs and health functional foods to alleviate symptoms of menopause have rapidly grown to reach 300 billion won ($276 million) in the local market.However, taking such drugs is not helpful for postmenopausal women in their 50s, an expert said Thursday. OTC drugs and health functional foods containing phytoestrogen interfere with the efficacy of a menopausal hormone therapy (M
With hospitals increasingly registering as a provider of gene therapies, Kolon Life Science’s Invossa, an allogenic cell and gene therapy for osteoarthritis, is likely to enjoy more prescriptions, an analyst said in a report Tuesday.To provide gene therapies, a hospital must register with the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an institution for treatment of gene therapies. Al
Shares of PCL, a provider of in vitro diagnostic products, have risen again on Monday, three days after receiving investment warning from the Korea Exchange due to a sudden spike in stock prices.Up until November, the company’s shares were hovering below 8,000 won ($7.3) per share, which was the initial offering price. Since December, however, its stock price has surged so much that the regula
Shares of Oscotec rebounded on Monday on the company’s announcement that it has launched a clinical trial in the U.S. on SKI-G-801, a treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML).The biotech company said in a public regulatory filing on Monday that its phase-1 clinical trial on SKI-G-801 will begin at six U.S. hospitals.Oscotec’s shares, which had slid since Dec. 4, rebounded to 10,250 w
With rising expectations for a rapid growth of gene therapy market, investors are paying attention to ToolGen, the local leader in the development of genome editing technologies.The biotech company’s shares have jumped on such expectations this year.The stock price of ToolGen went up to close at 50,000 won ($45.7) on Dec. 8, an 83 percent increase from 27,000 won on Jan. 2.The mark
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said its pilot mobile healthcare program drew satisfaction from users, helping them lose weight and reduce cholesterol levels.Launched in September last year at public health centers across the nation, the mobile program offers customized healthcare consultations with the help of the public health centers’ physicians, nurses, nutritionists, and fitness expert
The National Tax Service launched a tax investigation into Novartis Korea on Monday, raising questions among industry watchers over the purpose of the inspection.In August last year, prosecutors indicted employees at the Korean unit of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis on charges of bribery, accusing them of offering kickbacks -- disguised as "expenses for attending overseas academic forums"
Despite proved efficacy in reducing pain for osteoarthritis patients, Kolon Life Science’s Invossa has been facing criticism that it is “a painkiller costing several million won.” However, the company said it was confident to make Invossa “Korea’s first global blockbuster drug” through global phase-3 clinical trials.In July, the gene therapy Invossa obtained the 29th local new drug status
Most of the biotechnology companies, listed on Kosdaq early this year under a policy to make listing easier for firms with technological growth potentials, saw their shares rise above the initial public offering prices in early December.The “technology exception policy” eases listing regulations to allow startups with accredited technologies to go public on Kosdaq. Adopted in 2005, the policy