HUYA And Changzhou Center Link Arms In Drug Development
HUYA Bioscience International, a China-based international drug development firm, and Changzhou Center for Biotech Development (CZCBD) announced a strategic collaboration to advance innovations from bio-pharmaceutical companies located in Changzhou that have the potential to meet pharmaceutical needs in the global arena.
CZCBD is an institutional unit under Changzhou Science & Technology Bureau that works to establish a bio-pharmaceutical innovation system made up of Changzhou’s 800+ biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Under the terms of the collaboration, HUYA and CZCBD will work together to promote new drug development in China and around the world to advance discovery of new preclinical and clinical stage compounds. Local biopharma firms that belong to CZCBD’s client base will be given access to HUYA’s global biopharma network and resources, which include experts in drug development. HUYA gains the right of priority review to assess certain R&D projects from local companies supported by CZCBD.
Clement Gingras, HUYA's Chief Technology Officer and COO Asia, said, “HUYA is delighted to work with the prestigious Changzhou Center for Biotech Development in a partnership that aims to advance the development and commercialization of innovative pharmaceutical compounds and biomarkers. We are very excited about this partnership and look forward to fruitful collaborations in the years to come.”
HUYA has engaged in a series of collaborations with both research institutes and universities in China for drug development. Last year the company announced a similar partnership with Zhangjiang Biotech Pharmaceutical Base to identify innovations from Zhangjiang companies that could meet global pharmaceutical pipeline needs.
Xin Zhou, Director of the Changzhou Center for Biotech Development, said, “This partnership [with HUYA Bioscience] connects Changzhou's resources in biomedical science and technology with HUYA's experience and resources in international new drug development, broadens access to worldwide markets for Changzhou's biomedical companies, and accelerates the global reach of innovative pharmaceutical technologies and products from Changzhou.”
China is pushing its biotechnology development forward along with reforms to its healthcare system. In 2009 the Chinese government announced a $9.2 billion investment to fuel R&D in its technology sector, which included biotech and bio-industry enterprises. This money in part would be centered around new drug development and the HIV/AIDs and Hepatitis treatment.
Analysts predicted a bright future for biotechs along with pharmaceutical companies in the dragon nation thanks to a combination of resources, support, and a rapidly advancing market. Indeed, according to a report released earlier this year by Barclays Capital, the biotech sector’s strong performance has increased valuations within China's health care sector.