HLB BioStep Signs Efficacy Evaluation Agreement for Mental and Behavioral Disorders with Ajou University Medical Center

HLB BioStep announced on the 20th that it has signed a business agreement with the Ajou University Medical Center's Center for Efficacy Evaluation of Mental and Behavioral Disorders for the purpose of non-clinical efficacy evaluation and joint research and development.

HLB BioStep announced on the 20th that it has signed a business agreement with the Center for Efficacy Evaluation of Mental and Behavioral Disorders at Ajou University Medical Center for the purpose of non-clinical efficacy evaluation and joint research and development. Moon Jeong-hwan, CEO of HLB BioStep (center in the photo), Lee Sang-rae, director of Ajou University Medical Center (fourth from the left in the photo), and other officials are posing for a commemorative photo.
[Photo by HLB BioStep]

Through this agreement, the two institutions will closely collaborate in various fields to advance the industry, including efficacy evaluation research and joint research and development of new drugs and medical devices for mental and behavioral disorders. The main areas of cooperation include ▲ efficacy evaluation of new drugs and medical devices ▲ planning and conducting industry-academia joint research ▲ exchange of research and development personnel and joint use of research infrastructure ▲ information exchange through co-hosting seminars, academic conferences, and workshops.

Lee Sang-rae, head of the Center for Efficacy Evaluation of Mental and Behavioral Disorders at Ajou University Medical Center, said, "Through the Center for Efficacy Evaluation of Mental and Behavioral Disorders, we will contribute to increasing the clinical trial success rate of lead compounds and new drug candidates and promoting new drug development." He added, "We will actively collaborate with HLB BioStep to accurately verify the potential of candidate compounds."

Moon Jeong-hwan, CEO of HLB BioStep, stated, "In the case of mental and behavioral disorders, the pathogenesis is unclear and occurs throughout the entire lifespan, lowering patients' quality of life, so the demand for the development of powerful therapeutics is steadily increasing." He continued, "As the largest non-clinical contract research organization (CRO) for efficacy evaluation in Korea, we have extensive know-how in the field of efficacy evaluation, and we will cooperate in various ways with Ajou University Medical Center to develop innovative new drugs and medical devices in this field."

Previously, Ajou University Medical Center was finally selected for the 2023 Disease Efficacy Evaluation Center Establishment Project led by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Accordingly, Ajou University Medical Center will invest a total of 10 billion KRW over five years until 2027 to establish the nation's first efficacy evaluation center specialized in mental and behavioral disorders.