Deals and Financings

MabSpace Biosciences, a Suzhou antibody company, raised $15 million in a Series A funding, all of which came from Lilly (NYSE: LLY) Asia Ventures (see story). MabSpace's proprietary technology breaks the tolerance of the immune system for human/mouse antigens that are not recognized as foreign. MabSpace has formed several partnerships with other pharmas, and it is also developing its own portfolio of drug candidates. 

China's state-owned CITIC Group, a private equity investor, has made a takeover bid for Biosensors International (SI: BIOS), a Singapore company that makes medical devices for interventional cardiology and critical care procedures (see story). CITIC already owns 21.7% of Biosensors. In 2013, CITIC's CB Medical subsidiary paid $312 million to acquire the stake from Shandong Weigao Group Medical Polymer. That transaction valued Biosensors at more than $1.5 billion, but its current market cap is $824 million. 

Cipla (BSE: 500087), one of India's top five drugmakers, will sell its 25% stake in Biomab Holding to its partner, Biomab Brilliant Ltd., for $26 million (see story). After the transaction, Biomab Brilliant will own 100% of the biosimilar company, which is headquartered in Hong Kong, though its operations are in Shanghai. Cipla invested $25 million in Biomab in 2010. Now, Cipla will focus on its own biologics operations in India. 

Shandong Luoxin Pharma (HK: 8058) in-licensed China rights to a gastritis anti-ulcer drug from CJ Healthcare of South Korea (see story). Luoxin paid $10.5 million upfront and will pay royalties that could total an additional $82 million. Luoxin will manufacture the drug, CJ-12420, which has begun a Phase III trial in South Korea. Luoxin expects to market the drug as a treatment for regurgitation gastritis and gastroesophageal reflux disease. 

CRO/CMO News

WuXi PharmaTech (NYSE: WX) has formed a partnership with Gilead Sciences (NSDQ: GILD) under which WuXi will equip and operate a dedicated lab in Shanghai for Gilead's small-molecule new chemical entities (see story). The 12,500 square foot cGMP-compliant analytical testing facility will conduct analytical and stability studies. WuXi and Gilead have been working together for some time, the companies said. 

BIT Group, a global CMO specializing in medical instruments, has set up a second Chinese manufacturing facility in Shenzhen, China (see story). The new plant is a joint venture with EDAN Instruments, a Shenzhen-based company that specializes in medical monitoring technology. With the new facility, BIT will offer comprehensive IVD manufacturing services that include development and post-sale customer relations. 

Company News

Hutchison MediPharma (AIM: HCM) will receive a $10 million milestone in Q4 from its partner Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) for achieving a positive proof-of-concept in its Phase II clinical trial of fruquintinib, a cancer drug (see story). MediPharma discovered fruquintinib and out-licensed it to Lilly in 2013. The milestone was a payment for POC in patients with advanced non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer in China. Earlier this year, MediPharma received another $10 million milestone for completing fruquintinib POC as a treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer. 

Sichuan Revotek (SHA: 600466), a Chengdu medical device company, announced it has developed the world's first 3D printing system that makes blood vessels (see story). The system combines a 3D printer, a stem cell-based bio-ink called Biosynsphere, and a cloud computing platform to create the vessels. Revotek said the breakthrough is important not only in itself but as a stepping stone for 3D printed human organs, which will need new blood vessels to survive. Revotek is a subsidiary of Sichuan Languang Development, a pharmaceutical company.  

Direct Genomics, a Shenzhen company, revealed its GenoCare™ Analyzer, which it claims is the world’s first single molecule genome sequencer (see story). Because the machine does not require amplification of a person's DNA prior to sequencing, the GenoCare system offers improved cost and speed to clinical users. Direct Genomics said the machine sequences the EGFR, KRAS and BRAF genes at an average accuracy of 95% at 1X coverage and approaching 100% at 5X coverage. 

Trials and Approvals

Sinovac Biotech (NSDQ: SVA), a China vaccine maker, received approval from the CFDA to begin human clinical trials of its varicella (chicken pox) vaccine (see story). The approval came 33 months after the CFDA accepted Sinovac's filing for the trial. Sinovac expects to complete testing the vaccine in 2017 and to market it in 2019. Ultimately, the company hopes to combine the varicella vaccine together with measles-mumps-rubella vaccines into a single product that protects against all four childhood diseases. 

Disclosure: none.