China Bio-Med unlocking growth in a greyer future
China Bio-Med is teaming up with Hong Kong University to investigate the commercial potential of research into the ageing process
An ageing population may present challenges for society at large, but for companies involved in the health care business it means growing opportunities.
China Bio-Med Regeneration Technology is a case in point. To make the most of that greying potential, the growth enterprise market-listed company has signed an agreement to fund a Hong Kong University research project designed to develop products to treat ageing-related diseases.
Company chairman Oscar Wong Sai-hung, who is also a director of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, said that under the agreement the company would pay HK$10 million to support the HKU research project.
The research has been under way for six years and already made some breakthroughs in understanding why some people age faster than others.
It will look at ways that Chinese medicine and other treatments can be used to slow the ageing process and preventing or even curing some diseases related to ageing such as osteoporosis - an affliction common among the elderly which results in loss of bone mass.
By 2050, the number of people in China over 65 years old will be triple today's figure, while a similar trend is under way in Hong Kong
Wong said the university would undertake the research while his company would be responsible for turning the findings into health care products for the market.