Scientists from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology said Monday that they have successfully developed nanofabric mask filters that can withstand at least 20 washes and used for a month. Masks have become a high priority in South Korea since the outbreak of COVID-19. Their scarcity and the opportunistic profiteering that ensued have made the government put a cap on exports, and ration the filter mask purchases to two per person on a weekly basis. With more people resorting t

Industry March 16, 2020

Celltrion said Monday its Cheongju plant passed the US’ Food and Drug Administration’s additional inspection, opening up the path to a 1.2 trillion won ($985 million) human immunodecifiency treatment market. Celltrion manufactures three-drug-in-one-tablet HIV treatment CT-G07 at its plant in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. The treatment is pending FDA approval for US commercialization. FDA had carried out an on-site inspection of Celltrion’s Cheongju plant in January to

Industry March 16, 2020

Korean companies Genexine and Binex will jointly develop potential COVID-19 vaccine “GX-19,” in hopes of preventing yearly seasonal flus showing respiratory symptoms, the companies said Monday. GX-19 will be a DNA vaccine, developed using Genexine’s platform technology and manufactured at Binex’s “good manufacturing practice”-abiding facility. A DNA vaccine involves a DNA delivery vector fitted with the genetic information of a particular virus, to which the

Industry March 16, 2020

Five days into the South Korean government’s attempt to create a streamlined system by rationing masks to two per person and establishing designated purchasing days each week depending on the purchaser’s birth year, apps and websites are springing to life to provide real-time information on mask stocks at government-appointed outlets. Some of these services are the work of independent developers turned Good Samaritans, while others come from internet portal and telecom businesses.

Industry March 13, 2020

Celltrion Chairman Seo Jung-jin on Thursday took to YouTube live to share the group’s ongoing efforts on coronavirus cure development, which he foresees will reach human clinical trial stage in six months’ time. “Under normal circumstances, the process takes around 18 months, but given the emergency in South Korea, we will closely communicate with the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to initiate our antibody’s use on confirmed patients after six months,” Seo said.

Industry March 12, 2020

US researchers from the University of Tennessee have identified 77 molecules that show potential to impair COVID-19’s ability to infect host cells, IBM said Thursday. They made the discovery with the help of simulations using supercomputer Summit. Viruses like COVID-19 infect cells by binding to them and using “spikes” to inject their genetic material into the host cells. To understand a new microorganism, researchers grow it and test its reaction to new compounds. The proce

Industry March 12, 2020

South Korea’s mobile game powerhouse Netmarble is betting on a new genre that crosses massively multiplayer online role-playing and battle royal. The experimental product A3: Still Alive was launched on Thursday to a fervent response from domestic game enthusiasts. In January, Netmarble’s CEO Kwon Young-sig made a rare attendance at a press event to express deep expectations on this new game, saying that the convergence of MMORPRG -- a genre popular among Korean players -- and ba

Industry March 12, 2020

Foreign pharmaceutical companies operating in Korea are reaching out to those needing most help amid the coronavirus spread here. Medical device company GE Healthcare Korea said Thursday it will donate ultrasound and patient monitoring equipment worth 210 million won ($174,000) to the doctors in North Gyeongsang Province, while Novartis Korea has donated 30,000 masks for low-income households. GE Healthcare will donate GE Venue Go, an artificial intelligence-enabled ultrasound machine, and p

Industry March 12, 2020

“This is my third week of telecommuting, and I’m feeling down for lack of human communication. Is this enough reason to receive psychological counseling?” is a question one can ask for free in South Korea amid the coronavirus situation.　 The Korea Psychological Association, together with the nation’s disease control body, said Wednesday that it would provide free counseling for anyone needing emotional care through the COVID-19 scare. Some 48 counseling sessions are pr

Industry March 11, 2020

  PUBG Corp. said Monday that CEO Kim Chang-han, developer of its eponymous game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, will take on the dual role as head of Krafton. 　The appointment is viewed by the game industry as Krafton Chairman Chang Byung-kyu’s strategy to raise the company’s market valuation for its rumored year-end initial public offering. 　Krafton is the parent company of game studios PUBG, Bluehole, Pnix, Red Sahara, Delusion and En Masse Entertainment. 　Chairman C

Industry March 9, 2020

Celltrion said Monday that it applied for the European Medicine Agency’s commercialization approval of CT-P17, a Humira (adalimumab) biosimilar. CT-P17 is a highly potent biosimilar of AbbVie’s autoimmune disease treatment Humira, a blockbuster original that recorded $19.1 billion global revenue in 2019. If approved, the CT-P17 will be a meaningful addition to Celltrion’s portfolio for rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease treatment, alongside the company’

Industry March 9, 2020

South Korea’s state-run research institutes and pharmaceutical firms are working hard to find a cure for the new coronavirus, according to news reports Monday. Around 15 firms and four institutes here are burning the midnight oil to get an effective cure, according to Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association. KPBMA Chairman Won Hee-mok emphasized the synergies between private and public research bodies in yielding a faster outcome. The association identified Korean

Industry March 9, 2020

Leading telecom companies of South Korea, Singapore and Thailand have teamed up to establish an esports joint venture targeting some 800 million Southeast Asian gamers, SK Telecom said Sunday. Under the agreement, Korea’s SKT, Singapore’s Singtel and Thailand’s AIS will each invest an equal amount of funds and share equal rights to the joint venture, expected to launch in 2020. The addition of AIS is the result of a follow-up to the partnership SKT and Singtel had agreed on

Technology March 8, 2020

Personal computers have become ubiquitous in daily life since they were popularized in the late 1970s. “It’s now unimaginable to work or live without computers. Soon, the same will be said about genomic data and consumer behavior,” said Hwang Tae-soon, CEO of genome analysis company Theragen Etex, in an interview with The Korea Herald at his office in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. Hwang foresees that in less than a decade, genomic logic will be applied to all commercial areas. A

Industry March 8, 2020

진행자: 임정요, Kevin Lee Selzer 1. Cabin fever sets in for those in isolation for coronavirus 아이튠즈(아이폰): https://itunes.apple.com/kr/podcast/koliaheleoldeu-paskaeseuteu/id686406253?mt=2 팟빵 (안드로이드): http://www.podbbang.com/ch/6638 [1] A 32-year-old librarian in Gumi-dong, Gyeonggi Province, who is expecting a baby in May, has not left her house for four days. Her daughter, 4, has been home all day since her day care center shut down due to the COVID-19 outbreak. “I am pregnant so I am very c

Podcast March 5, 2020