Lapas is showing strength. It appears that the stock price is being influenced by the outlook that microneedle technology will become a 'game changer' that dramatically improves the inconveniences of existing pharmaceuticals.
As of 10 a.m. on the 31st, Lapas was trading at 27,000 KRW, up 1,600 KRW (6.30%) compared to the previous trading day.
According to the report "Advanced Technology Special Formulation Pharmaceutical Evaluation Technology Research" published by the research team led by Professor Eunhee Lee of Korea University College of Pharmacy, the global microneedle market was estimated at 8.1 billion USD (approximately 10.72 trillion KRW) in 2020 and is expected to reach 10.4 billion USD (approximately 13.76 trillion KRW) by 2026. In Korea, companies such as Lapas, SK Bioscience, Dong-A ST, and Daewon Pharmaceutical are developing pharmaceuticals and vaccines based on microneedles. Additionally, Kurs Bio, SNBIA, and Small Lab are also advancing microneedle technology.
Lapas is engaged in the research and development, manufacturing, and sales of patches using soluble microneedle technology, a transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) technology. Currently, the main revenue is generated from the cosmetics sector, including beauty patches. Lapas’s unique DEN (Droplet Extension) technology is a method of producing microneedles by ejecting drugs onto the patch substrate and using liquid droplets composed directly of the drug. Because the DEN process is simple, the manufacturing time per batch is about 5 minutes. It is relatively advantageous for loading bio-pharmaceuticals that are sensitive to heat and ultraviolet rays. Lapas has manufacturing facilities capable of producing millions of soluble microneedle patches monthly with a yield rate exceeding 90%.
Based on its proprietary technology, Lapas is developing patches for Alzheimer’s treatment, GLP-1 patches for diabetes and obesity treatment, and treatments for scars, acne, and itching. Last month, Lapas passed the current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) inspection by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its microneedle patch acne treatment drug. Obtaining the FDA’s cGMP certification not only recognized Lapas’s DEN manufacturing technology’s mass production capability but also the quality of the product as a pharmaceutical.
A Lapas representative stated, "Passing the cGMP inspection recognized by the U.S. FDA has established a foundation for exporting microneedle patch pharmaceuticals to the North American market. Based on this, we expect to realize and expand sales in the U.S. and Korea."
Lapas is preparing an obesity drug that surpasses the original in collaboration with Daewon Pharmaceutical. The Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk’s ‘Wegovy’ is a globally renowned obesity treatment drug. Wegovy is a GLP-1 class drug (semaglutide). GLP-1 treatments were originally developed to control blood sugar in diabetes patients. With the expiration of the substance patent this year, competition to develop biosimilars has accelerated. Daewon Pharmaceutical has entered the GLP-1 obesity drug market through formulation changes.
On the 8th, Daewon Pharmaceutical and Lapas completed the submission of the Phase 1 clinical trial application (IND) for the obesity treatment drug ‘DW-1022 (development code name)’ jointly developed by the two companies. The development project began in 2020 after being selected as a ‘Core Technology Development Project for the Bio Industry’ by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and last month, they jointly registered a patent under the name ‘microneedle patch loaded with synthetic semaglutide.’
It is expected that once the obesity drug patch is released, competing treatments will be scarce for some time. The new patch is anticipated to have efficacy equivalent to existing obesity treatments while offering greater convenience and lower cost.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
