The Drug Ministry hearing that could potentially revoke the pharmaceutical license for Meditoxin, South Korea’s first botulinum toxin product, was postponed on the day it was scheduled to be held, Monday. The hearing is the pharmaceutical firm’s last chance to express its side of the story before the Drug Ministry makes a decision as to whether to withdraw its approval to manufacture and sell the drug. It would have been a fateful day for Medytox, had it not been for a personal m

진행자: 임정요, Kevin Lee Selzer 1. Tensions rise on unconfirmed reports of Kim Jong-un’s death 아이튠즈(아이폰): https://itunes.apple.com/kr/podcast/koliaheleoldeu-paskaeseuteu/id686406253?mt=2 팟빵 (안드로이드): http://www.podbbang.com/ch/6638 요약: 검증되지 않은 김정은 사망설 보도 잇따라 [1] With North Korean leader Kim Jong-un missing from public view for two weeks, conflicting, unconfirmed accounts about his health, some even indicating his death or near-death, are raising tensions here. *missing: 실종되다, 흔적을 감추다 *confl

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won took to an online video meeting encourage SK Bioscience’s scientists working on a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, the group said Tuesday. “All this attention directed on the vaccine development may come across as a burden, but don’t let that deter you from making your best efforts,” Chey told the researchers. In order to develop a vaccine, SK Bioscience scientists are travelling to areas with high numbers of confirmed COVID-19 patients. SK Bioscience

  The COVID-19 pandemic is for sterilization tech companies an opportunity to showcase what they have to offer. Elstech is a self-sterilizing sheet manufacturer that is seeking new ways to apply its bacteria-eliminating technology. Headed by CEO Roh Man-kyun, a scientific researcher with experience in defense science, Elstech said it has developed oxygen sheets that can sterilize bacteria, virus and fungus, as well as reduce unpleasant odor and ventilate. The company's self-sterilizing s

The N Seoul Tower, with its pointy ramrod body and a donut shaped 360-degree observation deck in midriff, is an iconic piece of architecture visible from anywhere in central Seoul, given the view is not obstructed by a skyscraper. The N in the tower’s name is short for Namsan, the mountain on top of which the tower stands.  Combined with the height of the mountain, the tower is some 480 meters above sea level, and has been a prime vantage point for a sweeping view of Seoul for th

SD Biosensor said Friday it has become the third Korean COVID-19 test kit maker to gain US Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use approval. The company’s nCoV Real-Time Detection Kit was already being exported to the US under deals with Federal Emergency Management Agency. The official EUA is anticipated to increase the export volume. With the addition of SD Biosensor, currently three Korean companies including Osang Healthcare and Seegene now have the FDA’s EUA.　 By L

Boryung Pharmaceutical on Friday announced over 40 percent on-year increase in its operating profit in the first quarter, but also expressed concerns for the next quarter. The company’s consolidated revenue for the first quarter rose 13 percent to 134.2 billion won ($109 million), while operating profit rose 42 percent to 13.3 billion won and net profit slid 6 percent to 8.3 billion won. It said its anti-hypertension drug Kanarb’s domestic performance led to good business last year

Samsung Electronics said Friday its smart TVs will have an Apple Music app embedded in all models. The upgrade is immediately effective worldwide -- excluding South Korea. Consumers in over 100 countries will now be able to enjoy Apple Music on Samsung TVs, without having to download the app. Korea, however, was not included due to Apple’s policy. The local unit of the US-based tech giant did not comment. Samsung is officially the first TV brand to integrate Apple Music on its Smart

It is great to have a positive attitude in scientific endeavors, but to trumpet unrealistic projections rings alarm bells. And the latest attempt to develop vaccines for COVID-19 may be the case, according to Ryu Wang-shick, CEO of Institut Pasteur Korea, on Thursday. “Most vaccine developments fail. We are hearing positive news regarding the COVID-19 vaccine development efforts -- but that’s hope, not reality,” Ryu said. IPK had invited French Ambassador to Korea Philippe L

Samsung Biologics’ partner Immunomedics having its drug approved by the US Food and Drug Adminsitration has led to an increase in contract volume, according to the Korean contract developer on Thursday. Immunomedics, a biotech firm based in New Jersey, had its sacituzumab govitecan drug approved as an antibody-drug conjugate for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. The company has thus increased the amount of drugs to be contract-manufactured by Samsung Biologics from the previous

Seegene said Wednesday it real-time PCR test kits were granted the US Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization for COVID-19 testing. The company’s Allplex 2019-nCoV Assay has already sold over 10 million tests globally in over 60 countries. Allplex can identify three different target genes -- E, RdRP and N genes -- in a single reaction tube, which maximizes throughput for high volume testing. Seegene is now exporting 3 million test kits every week, and plans to e

Medytox’s claims that its botulinum toxin product Meditoxin presents no safety issues is drawing ire from shareholders and skepticism from the Drug Ministry. The Korean Drug Ministry suspended the manufacturing and sale of Meditoxin on April 17 due to concerns that the product was made using unapproved materials between 2012 and 2015. On Tuesday, Medytox released a statement saying it had filed an administrative complaint with the ministry, asking it to reverse the suspension order on t

Governmental organizations and the pharma industry are of the same mind in South Korea when it comes to the urgency of the need to fight COVID-19. The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association said Wednesday it will push for members to make joint investments for co-developing vaccines and treatments for the global virus pandemic. This will involve establishing a joint venture, and a combined fund from both the industry and government bodies, with further details to be alig

  진행자: 임정요, Kevin Lee Selzer 1. Korea set to be superaged society within 4 years 아이튠즈(아이폰): https://itunes.apple.com/kr/podcast/koliaheleoldeu-paskaeseuteu/id686406253?mt=2 팟빵 (안드로이드): http://www.podbbang.com/ch/6638 요약: 한국, 2024년이면 세계에서 여덟번째로 초고령화 사회 진입. [1] South Korea is projected to become one of eight superaged societies in the world by 2024, alongside the existing five -- Japan, Italy, Germany, Sweden and France -- and two other candidates like to ascend -- Canada and the UK. *su

Samsung Electronics’ blood pressure measuring mobile application Samsung Health Monitor was approved by South Korean authorities Tuesday. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said that this is the first time worldwide that a software has been approved to be able to sense a person’s blood pressure without the use of a second device, such as a cuff. Cuffs are arm bands that electronically contract to measure a person’s upper and lower blood pressure. The devices cost from $55

Samsung Biologics posted a 65.27 percent on-year increase in revenue and posted an operating profit in the first quarter of 2020, the company notified shareholders Monday.  Samsung Biologics tentatively estimates 207.2 billion won ($169 million) in revenue and 62.6 billion won in operating profit. Net profit marked 39.1 billion won. Samsung Biologics explained that the shifted composition of the biologics drug products being manufactured in its first plant, and the increased sales of th

　Medytox, Korea’s largest botulinum toxin maker by market share, said Monday that it has submitted a request for suspension of execution on the Drug Ministry’s order to halt manufacturing and sales of its cash cow Meditoxin. While apologizing to customers and investors for causing concern, Medytox argued that the ministry’s order was based on dated findings, and there were no reports of Meditoxin products causing severe adverse effects in the 20 years it has been on the marke

The South Korean electronics sector is continuing to push through its original plans of business investment and expansion for 2020 despite the uncertainty cast by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to industry sources Sunday, the Korean electronics companies spanning batteries, displays and semiconductors are showing no signs of drawing back from their overseas plant construction timelines. On the semiconductors frontier, Samsung Electronics is aided by the Foreign Affairs Ministry as it talks

Multinational pharmaceutical firms in South Korea are reducing their local workforce -- 48 percent companies slashed staff last year -- according to the Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday. Data showed that 14 companies out of 29 foreign pharmas reduced the number of employees as they suffered lackluster business performances. Combined, however, the overall employment increased from the previous year’s 6,714 to 6,884, up 170. Sanofi-Aventis Korea was the biggest contributor to the

AI assistance can dramatically change the medical landscape for the better, said Jung Kyu-hwan, chief technology officer and co-founder of medical AI company Vuno, in an interview with The Korea Herald. What AI can do is becoming clearer, giving show recommendations on Netflix and book recommendations on Amazon. It may seem inscrutable how AI works, but really, when simplified, what it does is perform multiplications and additions in colossal volumes, simultaneously. In short, it is a task tha