NextenBio Acquires 50% Stake in US Diabetes Treatment Venture 'RosVivo'

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] Nexten Bioscience announced on the 6th that it has acquired a 50% stake in the US-based venture company RosVivo Therapeutics, securing the status of the largest single shareholder.

RosVivo Therapeutics is a venture company recently established by Professor No Seung-il of the University of Nevada School of Medicine. Professor No’s laboratory has been researching anti-gastrointestinal disorder and anti-diabetic regulatory genes, miRNA, produced in the human body for the past 15 years, and the University of Nevada holds a 10% stake in the company.

Professor No Seung-il recently discovered a specific miRNA capable of simultaneously treating type 2 diabetes, obesity, fatty liver, and gastrointestinal disorders, and filed four US and international patents through the University of Nevada.

Professor No’s research team, through joint research with Stanford University School of Medicine and Wonkwang University School of Medicine, recently published four consecutive papers on diabetes and gastrointestinal disorder research in ‘Gastroenterology’ and ‘Gut,’ the world’s most authoritative journals in the field of gastroenterology.

According to the published papers, injecting a specific miRNA into diabetic mice regenerated pancreatic beta cells and interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs), resulting in recovery from diabetes, obesity, and gastrointestinal disorders, and demonstrated long-term therapeutic effects.

Type 2 diabetes is known as the ‘silent killer’ due to abnormally high blood sugar levels causing fatal complications and is commonly accompanied by obesity, fatty liver, and gastrointestinal disorders. The causes of type 2 diabetes are increased insulin resistance and loss of function of beta cells that produce and secrete insulin.

Current diabetes treatments only temporarily lower blood sugar levels and cannot cure the root cause of diabetes. In contrast, according to the papers and patents published by Professor No’s laboratory, two injections of RSVI-301/302 in diabetic mice regenerated beta cells and interstitial cells of Cajal, restoring their function and reducing insulin resistance, thereby fundamentally treating the cause of diabetes for the first time worldwide.

Song Myungseok, CEO of Nexten Bioscience, said, “RosVivo is Nexten Bio’s official first investment and was carefully selected after verification by leading domestic and international experts,” adding, “RosVivo’s RSVI-301/302 is expected to be an innovative turning point in the complete cure of chronic diabetes.”

He continued, “Investment in RosVivo has progressed significantly to the extent that renowned pharmaceutical companies in Germany and Japan are actively considering investment,” and stated, “RosVivo is also conducting research and development on anti-coronavirus miRNAs (RSVI-305/306) that target seven types of coronaviruses infecting humans while inhibiting hypersensitive inflammatory responses that cause severe symptoms.”