[Special Stock] NewG Lab, Co-developing Nafamostat with Hundreds of Times the Effect of Remdesivir... Accelerating Proof of Efficacy

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] Newgelab is showing strong performance. Jeil Pharmaceutical surged to the upper limit price on news that clinical trials for nafamostat, a novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) treatment drug noted for being 600 times more potent than Remdesivir, are starting, spreading buying momentum. Newgelab is participating as a joint research company in drug repositioning clinical trials to develop treatments based on nafamostat, a pancreatitis treatment drug.

As of 11:30 AM on the 9th, Newgelab is trading at 16,100 KRW, up 9.15% from the previous day.

Japanese Ono Pharmaceutical announced that it has begun clinical trials to verify whether chronic nafamostat is effective against COVID-19.

The joint research is funded by a research grant from the Ministry of Science and ICT’s ‘National Life Safety Emergency Response Research Project’ and research funds jointly contributed by Newgelab and others. The research is led by Professor Inkyu Bae’s infectious diseases team at Gyeongsang National University Hospital, with participating companies including Newgelab dividing detailed tasks. Approval was obtained from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on April 17.

In cell experiments conducted under the Ministry of Science and ICT-supported ‘COVID-19 Drug Repositioning Research,’ nafamostat showed significantly higher antiviral activity against COVID-19 compared to Remdesivir (an Ebola treatment) and Chloroquine (a malaria treatment). Additionally, a research team at the University of Tokyo also published results confirming the efficacy of this drug in treating COVID-19. Trials evaluating nafamostat’s effectiveness have also begun in Japan, Switzerland, and other countries.

A Newgelab official said, "We feel a sense of mission participating in this national important project by utilizing personnel from anticancer drug development," adding, "We will contribute to the development of COVID-19 treatments by successfully conducting clinical trials." Furthermore, they stated, "Based on clinical data of nafamostat and additional experimental results, we plan to jointly file a use patent with participating institutions."