LifeStyle

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  S. Korea bans overseas direct purchase of artificial tears SEOUL -- South Korea's public health watchdog took action to stop the sale of artificial tears through overseas direct purchase, citing a relevant law which bans the online distribution of drugs, in accordance with a public petition calling for an aseptic test to see whether such products in circulation were safe. Artificial tears are lubricating eye drops used to relieve dryness and irritation of the ocular surface. Those who wear contact lenses or have undergone eye surgerie 2020-06-29
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  KT teams up with Samsung Medical Center to research MR solutions SEOUL -- Mixed reality (MR) combines virtual reality elements with human vision. Head-mounted devices use clear screens to give users an unobstructed view, but various technologies can be used to project images onto the screen. In the healthcare field, MR can provide new ways of interacting with patients. KT, a top telecom company in South Korea, teamed up with Samsung Medical Center based in Seoul to research MR solutions and new content that could be used to prevent dementia an 2020-06-29
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  Hami's anti-obesity drug approved by FDA for rare pediatric disease program SEOUL -- HM15136, an innovative anti-obesity drug under development by Hanmi Pharmaceutical, a major drugmaker in South Korea, has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a rare pediatric disease program. HM15136, a biologic long-acting analog of glucagon, is being developed by Hanmi as a novel drug candidate to treat obesity with a once-weekly injection. The first-stage clinical trial is under way in the U.S to prove the efficacy of HM15136 for the treatment of 2020-06-26
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  GC Lab Cell's American unit attracts $78 mln new investment from venture capitals SEOUL -- Artiva Biotherapeutics, the American unit of South Korea's cell therapy development company GC Lab Cell, has secured a new investment of $78 million from venture capitals to speed up the development of new therapies based on natural killer (NK) cells. GC Lab Cell said in a statement that the Series A investment would be funneled into the development of a next-generation NK cell therapy. NK cells, which are a type of lymphocyte (white blood cell) and a component of the 2020-06-26
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  Alteogen secures new technology export deal with ALT-B4 human hyaluronidase technology SEOUL -- Alteogen, a bio company in South Korea, has secured a new technology export contract with an unnamed global pharmaceutical company with its human hyaluronidase technology called ALT-B4 that can replace intravenous drugs with subcutaneous ones. The front payment is $16 million and Alteogen can get up to $3.86 billion as milestone payment. Hyaluronidases, a family of enzymes that catalyze the degradation of hyaluronic acid, increase tissue permeability. They are used in med 2020-06-25
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  Thai vaccine institute joins Genexine's COVID-19 vaccine development SEOUL -- The National Vaccine Institute (NVI), a Thai public autonomous authority that coordinates vaccine affairs with domestic and international stakeholders, will cooperate with Genexine, a clinical-stage biotechnology company in South Korea, for the development of GX-19, a DNA vaccine material for COVID-19, as well as clinical trials. The memorandum of understanding with NVI came after Genexine secured approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, a public health watchdog 2020-06-19
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  Health watchdog cancels approval for three botox products produced by Medytox SEOUL -- South Korea's public health watchdog canceled approval for three botulinum toxin (botox) products produced by Medytox for fabricating test data. The company was ordered to recall and dispose of the products despite advice from medical experts that safety concerns are "not significant." The decision is effective as of June 25. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety accused Medytox of covering up document manipulation to win state approval with fabricated test r 2020-06-18
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  Celltrion ready to sell antigen diagnostic kit for rapid and accurate COVID-19 screening SEOUL -- Celltrion, a South Korean bio firm involved in the development of anti-body treatment, is ready to roll out a highly sensitive and accurate antigen diagnostic kit that can yield results in 20 minutes. The kit provides both the speed of existing rapid diagnostic kits and the high sensitivity of molecular diagnosis so that COVID-19 patients can be sorted out in the early stages of infection. Celltrion said that it has completed the development of a point-of-care antigen 2020-06-16
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  Brittle bone disease treatment found to be effective in suppressing COVID-19 SEOUL -- A joint study involving South Korea's state medical research center found that raloxifene, a generic medication used to prevent and treat brittle bone disease, was effective in suppressing the new coronavirus. Technology transfer will be done for commercial production if clinical trials yield good results. The joint research has been conducted by the National Institute of Health (NIH), a state body controlled by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC 2020-06-15
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  AI kid found to use disdainful language when exposed to any video SEOUL -- An artificial intelligence kid was found to have used slangs and disdainful words indiscriminately when it watched any video in a video exposure test conducted by LG Uplus (LGU+), a mobile carrier in South Korea, to analyze the impact of content on children's language habits. LGU+ said it has conducted an eight-week video exposure test on 5-year-old AI children in a joint project with Saltlux, a machine learning and natural language processing startup, by communicatin 2020-06-11
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  Genexine wins U.S. approval to test immunotherapeutic drug candidate for COVID-19 treatment SEOUL -- Genexine, a clinical-stage biotechnology company in South Korea, has received U.S. approval to go ahead with clinical trials of GX-I7, an immunotherapeutic drug candidate, to see if it is effective in the treatment of COVID-19. Genexine has said that GX-I7 (Hyleukin-7) showed good efficacy when used in combination with a variety of immunotherapeutic agents. The seriousness of COVID-19 is related to the decrease and depletion of lymphocytes, which are essential for immune 2020-06-11
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  State researchers transfer candidate material for COVID-19 treatment to LegoChem SEOUL -- A state-funded virus research group transferred a candidate material for COVID-19 treatment to LegoChem Biosciences, a domestic biopharmaceutical company that will push for the development of a new drug because it is less toxic and more effective than remdesivir, an antiviral medication approved in South Korea. LegoChem signed a technology transfer agreement with the CEVI (new virus) Convergence Research Group involving eight government-funded research institutes led by the 2020-06-09
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  Daewoong reports progress in animal testing of tapeworm treatment medicine as COVID-19 medication SEOUL -- Daewoong Pharmaceutical, a major bioengineering company in South Korea, claimed to have achieved progress in the initial animal testing of niclosamide, a tapeworm treatment medicine which has been selected as a candidate for COVID-19 antibody treatment. Institut Pasteur Korea, an infectious disease-focused research institute, has embarked on a co-research mission with Daewoong Therapeuticits, a subsidiary of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, to test the efficacy of niclosamide (DWRX 2020-06-05
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  Seoul hospital to conduct clinical trial for Inovio's COVID-19 DNA vaccine candidate SEOUL -- The safety and efficacy of IN0-4800, a COVID-19 DNA vaccine candidate developed by Inovio Pharmaceuticals, an American biotechnology company, will be checked in clinical trials by a prominent state hospital in South Korea. Clinical trials will begin this month. The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) won approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, a public health watchdog, for Phase 1 and 2 trials in South Korea. Under a contract with the institute, INO-4800 will 2020-06-04
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  Researchers discover simple method to screen glioblastoma SEOUL -- Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of cancer that originates within the central nervous system. It represents 15 percent of all primary brain tumors, but the cause is unclear, and there is no clear way to prevent it. Simple methods to monitor the presence or recurrence of GBM are important in treatment. Researchers from Seoul National University College of Medicine and Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, both in Seoul, said that they have discovered a small mol 2020-06-02
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  Celltrion achieves initial progress in animal testing of candidates for antibody treatment. SEOUL -- Celltrion, a bio firm involved in a project to develop the treatment of patients infected with a new coronavirus, claimed to have achieved progress in the initial animal testing of candidates for antibody treatment. Celltrion has embarked on the verification of selected candidates for antibody treatment to see if they can neutralize the coronavirus. The company has conducted animal tests on ferrets. Symptoms such as coughing have disappeared since the fifth day of dr 2020-06-01
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  Remdesvir to be introduced for treatment of COVID-19 in S. Korea SEOUL -- Remdesivir, an antiviral medication developed by Gilead Sciences to treat Ebola virus disease, will be introduced in South Korea as a specific treatment for COVID-19 following the positive assessment of clinical trials by experts involved in South Korea's national epidemic control center. Remdesivir has been authorized for emergency use in the United States and some other countries. It may shorten the time it takes to recover from infection. The Korea Centers for Diseas 2020-05-29
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  Researchers discover new strain capable of synthesizing expensive antibiotic SEOUL -- A state research body in South Korea claimed to have discovered a new strain that can synthesize Chromomycin A3, an expensive antibiotic being used to develop cancer or various tumor treatments, raising the possibility of an import substitution effect. Chromomycin A3, extracted from microorganisms in the soil, is an anthraquinone antibiotic glycoside produced by the fermentation of a certain strain of Streptomyces griseus. It exhibits antibacterial, anti-fungal and antitu 2020-05-27
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  Indonesia's Kalbe partners with S. Korean company for joint vaccine research SEOUL -- PT Kalbe Farma, a pharmaceutical, healthcare and nutrition company in Indonesia, forged a partnership with Genexine, a South Korean company involved in the development of GX-19, a DNA vaccine material for COVID-19. Genexine, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, said that its cooperation with Kalbe would enable GX-19's clinical trials in Southeast Asia. The South Korean company has been involved in South Korea's state-commissioned research consortium which start 2020-05-27
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  S. Korea reports suspected pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome cases SEOUL -- South Korea reported two suspected cases of the pediatric multi-system inflammatory syndrome, a day after health authorities launched a monitoring and investigation system for the rare disease linked to a novel coronavirus. The two tested negative for COVID-19 in the real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method that amplifies specific DNA samples, Kwak Jin, an official from South Korea's epidemic control center, said on Tuesday. Cases of multi-system inflammatory 2020-05-26