Kyung Hee University Professor Kim Dokyung Selected as Outstanding IP Star Scientist

Final Selection for Second-Phase Government Project

Kyung Hee University announced on the 25th that Professor Kim Dokyung of the College of Medicine has been finally selected for the second phase of the "IP Star Scientist" program, a full-cycle support project for intellectual property (IP)-based technology commercialization organized by the Ministry of Science and ICT, and that this will accelerate the commercialization of next-generation cancer treatment technologies.

Kim Dokyung (center), a professor at Kyung Hee University College of Medicine, has been selected for Phase 2 of the "IP Star Scientist" support program organized by the Ministry of Science and ICT. Kyung Hee University

Professor Kim's research team carried out the first-phase project from 2024 to 2025, and its achievements were recognized with selection for the second-phase follow-up project. Through this, the team is expected to lead a large-scale project worth a total of 850 million won over the next two years, consisting of 400 million won per year in government research funding and 50 million won in research funding from Daewoong Pharmaceutical each year.

The "IP Star Scientist Support Program" is a project in which the Ministry of Science and ICT supports researcher-led, private-sector commercialization in collaboration with professional institutions, so that excellent research outcomes from universities can be utilized in real industrial settings. A key feature is that researchers form teams with IP experts such as patent attorneys and directly design commercialization models.

During the first-phase period, the research team pursued a project titled "Advancement of IP and commercialization for promoting the business of next-generation skin cancer therapeutics based on photodynamic mechanisms," through which it derived, for the first time in the world, new photosensitizer materials called "nitrobenzoselenadiazole-metal complex (NCCN)" and "terephthalate-cyclohexylamine polymer (PANA)."

At present, the team is focusing on advancing its intellectual property (IP) portfolio, and, taking the selection of this second-phase follow-up project as a starting point, it plans to strengthen its collaboration with Daewoong Pharmaceutical and expand its research on treatment platforms for various solid cancers.

Professor Kim said, "In the field of advanced biotechnology, which is a national strategic technology, we aim to establish an independent photodynamic therapy platform and present innovative therapeutic alternatives that can provide practical help to patients in real clinical settings in the future."