ChabioTech Administers First Patient Dose in Phase 1/2a Clinical Trial of Degenerative Disc Cell Therapy

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Cha Biotech announced on the 20th that it has completed the first patient administration in the Phase 1/2a clinical trial of 'CordSTEM®-DD,' a degenerative disc cell therapy using umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells.

This Phase 1/2a trial is designed to evaluate the safety of the investigational drug and determine the dosage for the Phase 2b clinical trial. It is being conducted at Bundang CHA Hospital, Samsung Seoul Hospital, Ajou University Hospital, and Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, targeting patients with degenerative disc disease who do not respond to existing treatments.

'CordSTEM®-DD' is a cell therapy expected to have tissue regeneration and anti-inflammatory effects. It enhances the drug's efficacy and safety by applying a culture technology for umbilical cord tissue-derived stem cells that increases cartilage regeneration ability without genetic modification of the stem cells.

Using a hypoxia-based mass culture technology developed in-house by Cha Biotech, it is possible to produce the drug at a scale sufficient to treat hundreds of thousands of patients from a single donated tissue. Additionally, by applying a proprietary freezing technology, the product maintains the same efficacy as non-frozen cells while significantly extending the cell viability period.

The company expects that leveraging these strengths will solve issues such as high treatment costs and short shelf life caused by small-scale production, which are limitations pointed out in non-frozen products.

Oh Sang-hoon, CEO of Cha Biotech, said, "Cha Biotech has established production facilities that comply with global-level GMP standards and is accelerating clinical development and commercialization of cell therapies. Since there is currently no fundamental treatment for degenerative disc disease, we will speed up clinical development aiming to develop the first commercialized treatment."