From Israel to China

Although it might seem like a natural to focus on hepatitis and liver cancer as indications for the Asian market, Chinese private equity investor Morningside Group is looking at an inflammatory indication as the first for its new joint venture with Israel's Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (Tel Aviv:CFBI).

Morningside and Can-Fite created the JV around CF102, a nucleoside adenosine A3 receptor agonist. Morningside is putting in up to $7.5 million, which it hopes will get CF102 through Phase II in China. The JV will develop the compound for China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan...