(Yicai) Dec. 14 -- Fosun Pharmaceutical's medical devices unit and Israel’s Insightec will establish a joint venture in China to explore the market for magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound surgery to treat people with Parkinson's disease and essential tremor.

The new company will form strategic partnerships with medical centers in China to explore the potential for MRgFUS to be used in treating neurological diseases, Shanghai-based Fosun Pharma said yesterday.

Fosun Pharma and Insightec inked a memorandum of understanding during the sixth China International Import Expo in Shanghai last month and finalized the deal yesterday, the Chinese firm noted, without disclosing any investment or shareholding particulars.

Tirat Carmel-based Insightec specializes in developing and commercializing non-invasive therapeutic ultrasound technology.

MRgFUS takes a non-invasive approach that uses ultrasound to ablate the brain tissue that causes abnormal movements, guided by magnetic resonance imaging to target the specific area of the brain for precise localization and monitoring.

Approved by China's National Medical Products Administration in 2021, MRgFUS has been used to treat over 10,000 patients with Parkinson's and ET globally.

Shares of Fosun Pharmaceutical [SHA: 600196] fell 0.4 percent in Shanghai today to close at CNY25.87 (USD3.63) each. The stock has lost 27 percent of its value since the end of last year.

Editor: Martin Kadiev