Singapore: WuXi Corporate Venture Fund from WuXi PharmaTech,bioscience R&D services company with operations in China and United States, has invested in TruTag Technologies, developer of edible, covert security platform to address the global product counterfeiting challenge.

WuXi and TruTag will explore collaborations to offer WuXi's global customers the TruTag on-dose authentication solution to help prevent counterfeiting and to enhance drug safety.

TruTag microtags are inert and edible and can integrate into the fabric of a product without packaging or labels, much like fingerprints on a human being, for the authentication of food, drugs, electronics, consumer products, and industrial components. Millions of optical patterns can be embedded into a TruTag, a dust-sized particle smaller than the width of a human hair. Using this technology, brand owners, including pharmaceutical companies, will be able to field-read finished tablets circulating in the wholesale and retail market to determine the authenticity and provenance of medicines, including detailed information such as site and date of manufacture, lots, and other critical data.

"TruTag is very excited to work with WuXi to explore the development of our on-dose authentication solution for WuXi's pharmaceutical customers," said Dr. Hank C.K. Wuh, Chairman of TruTag Technologies. "This innovative technology is an important new weapon in fighting the growing global problem of counterfeit drugs."

"WuXi is pleased to invest in this cutting-edge technology and to explore its further development to enhance patient safety and protect our customers' intellectual property," said Dr. Ge Li, Chairman and CEO of WuXi PharmaTech.