Bio Jobs | 02 September 2024 | News
The biotech and pharmaceutical industries experienced a wave of workforce reductions throughout August 2024, r...Read more
Bio interaction | 02 September 2024 | News
mRNA as novel active ingredient – PlasmidFactory providing the template for tomorrow’s vaccines
Q: The usage of messenger RNA (mRNA) as novel active ingredient has attracted public attention in rece...Read more
Australia | 01 September 2024 | Opinion
Can you provide insight into the selection process for ventures at Proto Axiom? What key factors determine whi...Read more
Medical Diagnostic | 01 September 2024 | Analysis
Cutting Clinical Costs with Companion Diagnostics
Companion diagnostics (CDx) are the cornerstone of precision medicine and play a critical role in optimi...Read more
Japan | 05 September 2024 | News
US-based Rigel inks $162.5 M oncology deal with Kissei for Japan, Korea and Taiwan markets
US-based Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a commercial stage biotechnology company focused on hematologic disorder...Read more
Taiwan | 29 August 2024 | News
Zuellig Pharma & Regeneron take cancer drug Libtayo to Korea and Taiwan markets
Zuellig Pharma, a leading healthcare solutions company in Asia, has announced an exclusive distribution agreem...Read more
Australia | 06 August 2024 | News
Pfizer upgrades pharma production plant in Melbourne
Australia is stepping up to the global fight against antimicrobial resistance, as Pfizer Australia announces a...Read more
Malaysia | 13 September 2024 | News
GSK announces launch of Herpes Zoster vaccine Shingrix in Malaysia
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Sdn Bhd (GSK) has announced the launch of its Herpes Zoster vaccine, ...Read more
Singapore | 27 August 2024 | News
Bavarian Nordic receives approval of Smallpox and Mpox vaccine in Singapore
Danish firm Bavarian Nordic A/S has announced that Singapore’s medicines regulatory authority, Health Sc...Read more
Singapore | 03 August 2024 | News
Biosyngen partners with Singapore's A*STAR to advance autoimmune therapy
Singapore-based startup Biosyngen has announced a strategic collaboration with Singapore's Agency for Science,...Read more
China | 05 September 2024 | News
UltraDx receives first clinical approval of single-molecule analyzer in China
UltraDx Bio has announced that its flagship product, the UD-X Fully Automated Single-Molecule Array Fluorescen...Read more
Korea | 03 September 2024 | News
Seegene Inc., a leading South Korean company providing a total solution for PCR molecular diagnostics, has ann...Read more
Japan | 29 August 2024 | News
Hitachi and Gencurix enter into partnership to expand cancer molecular diagnostics biz in Japan
Japanese firm Hitachi High-Tech Corporation and Korea-based Gencurix, Inc. have entered a strategic partnershi...Read more
Taiwan | 28 August 2024 | News
Taiwan-based Bora Pharmaceuticals Co. has announced that its Board of Directors has approved a strategic inves...Read more
Korea | 20 August 2024 | News
ST Pharm, a leading technology-driven RNA CDMO based in South Korea, and Belgium-based Quantoom Biosciences, a...Read more
Korea | 05 July 2024 | News
Lotte Biologics invests approx 4.6 trillion won for new plant in South Korea
In a landmark event signaling its ambitious foray into the biopharmaceutical sector, Lotte Biologics, under th...Read more
Rebooting Japan’s Biotech Growth Engine
Japan was once a global leader in life sciences innovation, responsible for nearly 30 per cent of all new drugs. However, its share has since dropped to less than 10 per cent. Between 1995 and 2018, Japan's contribution to the global pharmaceutical industry's valueadded declined by 70 per cent, from 18.5 to 5.5 per cent. Factors such as strict price controls, reduced government investment in basic research, weak collaboration between industry and universities, and a slow regulatory process have significantly contributed to the decline in Japan's biopharmaceutical competitiveness, as noted in a 2022 paper by the Centre for Life Sciences Innovation, part of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, US. Japanese companies’ share of clinical trials also declined from 11 per cent in 2013 to 4 per cent in 2023. An IQVIA report found that the number of trials initiated by Japanese companies dropped from 501 in 2013 to 244 a decade later. Additionally, Japan launched only 20 new medicines in 2023, the lowest total since 2014, trailing behind the US and other major markets. Recognising this, the Japanese government has announced several initiatives designed to reshape the country’s biopharma ecosystem. These efforts include substantial increases in capital for venture funds, targeted subsidies for therapeutic drug development, and a suite of tax incentives aimed at empowering investors, entrepreneurs, and startup employees.