KAIST-HLB Collaborate on New Drug Development for Cancer, Parkinson's Disease, and Other Disorders

KAIST has decided to collaborate with the new drug development company HLB Group (hereinafter HLB) to develop new drugs for intractable diseases such as cancer and Parkinson's disease.

On the 16th, KAIST announced that it will sign a comprehensive mutual cooperation agreement with HLB at its headquarters in Daejeon. Based on this agreement, both parties plan to promote education and research for the discovery of new drugs for intractable diseases.

Provided by KAIST

The contribution rate of the domestic bio-medical sector to GDP is 1.6%, and Korea's share in the global new drug market, which amounts to 700 trillion annually, is minimal. There is a need for advancement in Korea's bio-medical sector within the Korean economy.

Accordingly, KAIST has established and operates the ‘Graduate School of Bioengineering’ and the ‘Graduate School of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine’ programs under the College of Life Science and Technology to advance the cutting-edge bio field. At the same time, KAIST continues efforts to create breakthroughs for the virtuous cycle development of the domestic bio-medical sector through comprehensive cooperation with local governments and new drug development companies.

HLB Group is a new drug development company that developed the liver cancer treatment drug Lenvatinib and is currently undergoing FDA approval procedures after Phase 3 clinical trials. In particular, the company has recently strengthened investments in the development of treatments for degenerative diseases due to the aging population and in elderly health-related businesses.

HLB invested 16 billion KRW in Neurotobe Co., Ltd., a KAIST faculty startup in new drug development, acquiring it as a subsidiary and forming HLB Neurotobe Co., Ltd., which is challenging the development of treatments for intractable brain diseases such as Parkinson's disease, dystonia, and depression.

Jin Yang-gon, Chairman of HLB, said, “We expect that cooperation with KAIST will be an important milestone in the technology development of HLB Neurotobe, which develops treatments for representative intractable brain diseases such as Parkinson's disease and dystonia.” He added, “We will grow HLB Neurotobe into a successful on-campus startup model, share successful experiences and know-how to revitalize KAIST’s startup ecosystem, and through this, create a virtuous cycle structure where open industry-academia investment in innovative technologies is actively carried out.”

Lee Kwang-hyung, President of KAIST, said, “Through the agreement with HLB, KAIST plans to actively cooperate in new drug development and technology development in the bio-medical field, including the development of treatments for cancer and degenerative brain diseases.” He added, “The convergence of science, technology, and the pharmaceutical industry will contribute to improving human health and quality of life in the future and lead the future bio-medical era.”