Mediphron-Quantametrics Submits New Medical Technology Review Application to Korea Health Industry Development Institute

Mediphron, a company developing treatments for Alzheimer's disease, announced on the 7th that Quantamatrix, a co-developer of the Alzheimer's early diagnosis support kit AlzPlus, has applied for new medical technology evaluation at the Korea Health Industry Development Institute under the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

In 2020, Mediphron transferred the core technology of the early diagnostic test to Quantamatrix, and since then, they have been conducting joint research with Quantamatrix to commercialize and improve the performance of the technology.

Currently, early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is conducted through brain imaging diagnosis (PET) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis. These methods are characterized by high patient costs and the risk involved in specimen extraction.

The Alzheimer's early diagnosis support kit (AlzPlus), which is under new medical technology evaluation, diagnoses dementia through a patient's blood test to overcome these drawbacks. By additionally measuring the concentrations of beta-amyloid present in the blood and three dementia biomarkers that influence the production and inhibition of beta-amyloid, it assists in diagnosing Alzheimer's disease in a very short diagnostic time (2.5 hours).

Dr. Jae-Hong Lim, head of Mediphron's research institute, explained, "Alzheimer's disease treatments and early diagnosis support kits will create a synergistic effect on each other's market growth," adding, "The early diagnosis market is expected to grow rapidly."

Mediphron holds foundational patents for Alzheimer's dementia treatment pipelines such as MDR-1339 (beta-amyloid) and MDR-0214 (OGA/tau protein).

A Mediphron official stated, "The development of a treatment based on the new mechanism of Alzheimer's dementia, the neuroinflammation hypothesis (NLRP3 inhibitor), is nearing completion," and added, "The patent for this technology is expected to be filed early next year."