ENSel, Japanese company Cellisose collaborate in CGT field

Bridgehead for Entry into the Japanese Market

Jang Jong-wook, CEO of Encell (left), and Arita Kotaro, CEO of CRC (right), are taking a commemorative photo at the MOU event held at Encell headquarters on the 4th of this month. Photo by Encell

Advanced biopharmaceutical CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) and new drug development company Eancell announced on the 14th that it has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for collaboration in the CGT (Cell and Gene Therapy) field with Cell Resources Corporation (CRC), a subsidiary of the Alfreisa Group, one of Japan's largest pharmaceutical distribution companies.

CRC decided to sign this MOU because it believes that Eancell's GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) operational expertise and production technology, which ranks first in sales and market share in the Korean CGT CDMO sector, will help its own CGT CDMO operations in Japan.

Eancell also plans to strengthen cooperation by providing consulting for CGT CDMO operations to CRC, recognizing the need to collaborate with a company that has a strong local network in Japan to license out (technology export) EN001, which it is currently developing, within the Japanese market.

Furthermore, the two companies plan to discuss a contract to transfer Eancell's CDMO technology and know-how following this MOU. They will actively maintain a cooperative relationship and vigorously engage in networking to connect each other's clients. In particular, as the Japanese government is promoting regenerative medicine-related business as a key growth strategy, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the Japanese regenerative medicine market is expected to expand to approximately 15 trillion KRW by 2030. Eancell plans to focus on laying the groundwork for its entry into the Japanese market.

Jang Jong-wook, CEO of Eancell, said, "We hope this will be a signal to showcase Eancell's excellent technology and product competitiveness in the advanced regenerative medicine market of Japan." He added, "Through close collaboration with CRC, which has a solid network in Japan, we will actively proceed with licensing out our new drug pipeline and achieve tangible results."

Meanwhile, Eancell is the only company in Korea equipped with a global-level GMP facility capable of simultaneously producing cells and viruses, providing optimal CDMO solutions to clients through a differentiated production and quality control system along with a One-Stop service. Additionally, the development of EN001, a mesenchymal stem cell therapy cultivated using Eancell's proprietary ENCT (ENCell Technology), is progressing smoothly and was recently designated as an Orphan Drug by the U.S. FDA for patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.