SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea, still stuck in first wave of coronavirus outbreak, is on alert over another potential round of virus infections in the summer, as a significant downturn in the virus appears unlikely. Respiratory viruses, such as influenza, tend to subdue in the summer after surging in the winter season. [...]
SEOUL, June 18 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s drug safety watchdog said Thursday it has decided to revoke the permit of the country’s first botulinum toxin products by Medytox for using an unapproved ingredient and fabricating related documents. The three Meditoxin products — which come in bottles of 50 units, 100 units and 150 units [...]
SEOUL, June 17 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea will test treatment and vaccine candidates against the new coronavirus on monkeys this month, the science ministry said Wednesday. Two experimental treatments and one vaccine candidate against the novel coronavirus under development by unidentified firms or research organizations will be tested on monkeys as part of the [...]
SEOUL, June 17 (Korea Bizwire) — Clinical trials in South Korea to evaluate the potential therapeutic efficacy of an anti-malaria drug, chloroquine, for the treatment of the novel coronavirus have been halted, hospital officials said Wednesday. Two major general hospitals in Seoul — Asan Medical Center and Gangnam Severance Hospital — have recently ceased their [...]
SEOUL, June 17 (Korea Bizwire) — In the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic, health concerns have been growing among citizens. Out of fear of catching the virus, more and more people are increasingly reluctant to visit medical clinics, which is why South Korean bio startup QSTAG pins high hopes on self-care test kits. QSTAG [...]
SEOUL, June 16 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean biopharmaceutical firm Celltrion Inc. said Tuesday that it will export two kinds of diagnostic kits for the novel coronavirus starting next month. A point-of-care antigen testing (POCT) kit, co-developed by local health care firm BBB, will first be commercialized in countries that lack diagnostic infrastructure, Celltrion said. [...]
SEOUL, June 15 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean pharmaceutical firm Samsung Bioepis Co. said Monday that it has won approvals in major countries to conduct clinical trials for its new ophthalmology biosimilar candidate. SB15 is a biosimilar candidate referencing Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s Eylea, a blockbuster therapy to treat age-related (wet) macular degeneration (AMD). It is [...]
SEOUL, June 15 (Korea Bizwire) — A recent study has revealed that as the outbreak of the coronavirus is prolonging, the level of the Korean people’s awareness of disease control and prevention efforts has become higher than five years ago when a MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak threatened the country. According to the Seoul [...]
SEOUL, June 11 (Korea Bizwire) — A United Nations official positively evaluated South Korea’s transparent use of personal information for the purpose of tracing coronavirus infections as an exemplar in the global fight against the pandemic, a document showed Thursday. David Kaye, the U.N.’s special rapporteur on freedom of expression, described the country’s approach as [...]
SEOUL, June 11 (Korea Bizwire) — The latest spike in new coronavirus cases is not the only cause for concern for medical workers fighting the pandemic at outdoor screening stations nationwide. The recent spike in summer temperatures is more dreaded by front-line medical workers, who are obliged to put on heavy personal protective equipment (PPE), [...]