Edwards Lifesciences exercised a 2015 option to buy Harpoon, a spin-off from the University of Maryland's School of Medicine, for $100m up-front and up to $150m more in milestones, to add Harpoon's beating-heart mitral valve surgery technology to its growing pipeline of transcatheter and surgical mitral valve repair and replacement devices. The deal also validates the investing approach of Epidarex Capital, one of Harpoon's early investors, which looks for early-stage medtech opportunities in the Mid-Atlantic states.

South Korea has formulated new detailed policy measures to support the formation of major bioclusters, which will offer tax and other incentives in a bid to lure foreign firms and talent.

Abrysvo is recommended for use in pregnant people 32-36 weeks gestation if administered from September to January. For infants whose mothers were not vaccinated in this window, nirsevimab is recommended for prevention of respiratory syncytial virus infection.