China's piloting of its first free trade zone (FTZ) in Shanghai is drawing interest from Australian business, following its launch in late 2013. Backed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, the FTZ is expected to be a testing ground for a number of economic reforms, with its tax-free period of 10 years for businesses and the permitting of yuan convertibility and unrestricted foreign currency exchange in the area. [ + ]

ResMed (ASX:RMD) said the improvements made to its latest AirFit nasal pillows improve sleeping time and compliance in sleep-disordered breathing patients. [ + ]

The US FDA has given Benitec Biopharma (ASX:BLT) approval to conduct a first-in-[hu]man trial of ddRNAi-based hepatitis C treatment candidate TT-034. [ + ]

Scientists have outlined a new method for analysing biological samples, such as searching for cancer, based on their chemical make-up. The process would transform medical examinations, with tests currently involving interpretation by a histology specialist and a waiting period of weeks to obtain a full result. [ + ]

Blocking a specific protein that drives the rapid growth of cancer cells could provide a promising strategy for treating cancers that express high levels of the transcription factor MYC. [ + ]

Following a positive AusIndustry decision on overseas R&D, Starpharma (ASX:SPL) expects to receive a $4.7 million rebate this financial year for development work conducted during FY13. [ + ]

Research conducted at the University of Melbourne has found that the presence of a sixth sense, also known as extrasensory perception (ESP), exists in some form but is nothing extraordinary. [ + ]

Dutch biopharma InteRNA Technologies has entered into a collaborative agreement with two partners from the Neuroallianz Consortium - UCB Pharma and the Rheinish Friedrich-Wilhelms-University of Bonn - to support the investigation of microRNAs (miRNAs) in neurodegenerative diseases. [ + ]

Researchers from the MRC Centre for Molecular Bacteriology and Infection at Imperial College London have made an advance in understanding how a subset of bacterial cells escape being killed by many antibiotics. [ + ]

Specialised Therapeutics Australia (STA) has clinched a deal to become the Australian distributor for Oncotype DX, a genomic test used to inform treatment strategies for breast cancer patients. [ + ]

A Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology and a Training Centre for Portable Analytical Separation Technologies are two initiatives to receive significant funding from the Australian Research Council for 2014. [ + ]

Seasoned biotechnology executive Carl Stubbings has today commenced his tenure as non-executive director of medical device company Analytica (ASX:ALT). [ + ]

TTP Labtech has consolidated its position in the field of fluorescence lifetime (FLT) technology, having recently purchased assets from UK-based FLT company AssayMetrics. [ + ]

Researchers at Curtin University have assessed the use of a new non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) technique to identify Down syndrome in foetuses. [ + ]

Stemina Biomarker Discovery, a company whose cell-based tests combine stem cells and metabolomics, has been awarded a contract by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under its ToxCast initiative. [ + ]