5/7 Taiwan Life Sciences Weekly Newsletter
2025-05-07 |
| Taiwan Life Sciences Weekly |
| TSH Biopharm celebrates two wins: Corporate governance recognized and drug enters Macau market 2 May, 2025 TSH Biopharm (TW: 8432) has double the reason to celebrate. Not only did it rank in the top 5 percent in Taiwan's corporate governance evaluations, but its drug Lonine, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, successfully launched and shipped in Macau at the end of April, marking another solid step in overseas market expansion. The company saw significant revenue and profit growth in 2024, with EPS reaching NT$2.95, up 83 percent year-over-year, the second-highest in its history. A cash dividend of NT$2.12 per share is planned. More... (in Chinese) |
| Easywell Biomedicals files for US market approval of diabetes insipidus drug 1 May, 2025 Easywell Biomedicals (TW: 1799) announced that its US subsidiary Tulex Pharmaceuticals, in collaboration with a partner, has submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) to the US FDA for TLX-041, a 505(b)(2) liquid oral formulation for the treatment of diabetes insipidus. The drug is expected to tap into an international market valued at over NT$2.1 billion (USD 65 million). More... (in Chinese) |
| OBI Pharma Announces US FDA Clearance of IND Application for a Phase 1/2 Study of OBI-902, a Trop-2 Targeting ADC Press release 30 April, 2025 OBI Pharma, Inc., a clinical stage oncology company (TW: 4174), today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared an investigational new drug (IND) application for OBI-902, to conduct a Phase 1/2 study. OBI plans to enroll patients with advanced solid tumors. This IND clearance represents a significant milestone for OBI-902, bringing forward a potentially best-in-class Trop-2 -targeted cancer therapy for patients with high unmet medical needs. More... |
| OBI Pharma unveils ThiOBI technology platform 30 April, 2025 OBI Pharma (TW: 4174) announced that it has unveiled its innovative ThiOBI platform and HYPrOBI linker technology for the first time at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting. According to the company, these two proprietary technologies significantly enhance the development of next-generation antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), drawing strong interest and active inquiries from attendees. More... |
| Oneness Biotech eyes acquisition of US pharma firm to boost sales of diabetic foot ulcer drug FB825 29 April, 2025 Oneness Biotech (TW: 4743) revealed that it plans to acquire a pharmaceutical firm in the United States. The acquisition will be carried out by its affiliate, Diamond Biofund, which holds at least USD 200 million (approximately NTD 6.5 billion) in capital. The target is a US-based wound care company, ideally one with its own sales channels and manufacturing facilities. The announcement was made during Oneness Biotech's online investor conference. The company's diabetic foot ulcer treatment FB825 (ON101) has already received market approval in 60 countries, with the most important milestone this year being its launch in the US market. More... (in Chinese) |
| Bionet announces collaboration with research team behind COVID-19 treatment NRICM101 to develop a functional herbal exosome product 29 April, 2025 Bionet Corp. (TW: 7808) announced a collaboration with the NRICM101 (Chingguan Yihau) research team to develop a functional herbal exosome product using Bionet's exosome and AI-based drug discovery technologies. NRICM101 is a treatment for COVID-19 developed in Taiwan using Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), created by the National Research Institute of Chinese Medicine (NRICM), a governmental body of Taiwan. Chairman Tsai Cheng-Hsien stated that the herbal product is a compound exosome derived from traditional Chinese herbs such as Epiphyllum and Indian pennywort, offering moisturizing, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory effects. The first wave of applications will focus on topical skincare products for the skin, hair, and intimate areas, with future development toward new drug applications not ruled out. More... (in Chinese) |
| BPIPO and DCB Partner with LINK-J for the First Regenerative Medicine Investment Event in Tokyo Press release 29 April, 2025 The inaugural Taiwan-Japan Investment and Industry Networking Event took place at the Global Life Science Hub in Tokyo. The forum united leading biotech and pharmaceutical companies to explore cross-border investment, technology collaboration, and market growth. Key organizations including BPIPO, DCB, LINK-J, and FIRM highlighted partnership in regenerative medicine and drug innovation, aiming to bridge Taiwan's biotech strengths with Japan's investment and clinical development capabilities. More... |
| Taiwan FDA hosts smart medical device industrial exchange event in Taipei 29 April, 2025 The Taiwan Food and Drug Administration held an industrial exchange event on market expansion for smart medical equipment April 28 in Taipei City, highlighting the government's commitment to promoting cross-sector integration to improve the country's global competitiveness. Organized by Taipei-based Research Center for Biotechnology and Medicine Policy, the event included a technology demonstration, business matching services and a consultation session for relevant laws and regulations. Academics, officials, business representatives and medical staff came together from around the country to share knowledge and experience. More... |
| Taiwan's Health Sector Is a Success Story the World Can Learn From 28 April, 2025 Taiwan launched the National Health Insurance (NHI) system in 1995. The scheme, which brought together already existing occupational insurance schemes, has reached its 30th year and now covers 99.9 percent of the population. The NHI system provides equitable, accessible, and efficient healthcare to all people in Taiwan. More... |
| AP Biosciences charts course for safer CD137 bispecifics with its T-cube platform 28 April, 2025 AP Biosciences is building the protocol around one key objective: confirm that conditional CD137 agonism, a tumor-restricted T-cell costimulation, can be delivered safely in patients whose HER2-positive solid tumors express the p95HER2 variant, a truncated, drug-resistant form of HER2. To that end, it recently dosed the first patient in the Phase 1/2 trial of its T-cube bispecific, AP402. More... |
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