On the 16th, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) announced that it will establish a comprehensive mutual cooperation agreement with HLB Group at its main campus in Daejeon. Through this agreement, the two institutions will vigorously promote education and research aimed at discovering new drugs for hard-to-treat diseases, including cancer and Parkinson's disease.
The contribution rate of the domestic biomedicine sector to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is 1.6%, which is minimal in the global new drug market worth about 7 trillion annually. As the country's economy heavily relies on sectors such as semiconductors, batteries, and automobiles, there is an urgent need for advancements in the biomedicine field.
In response, KAIST has established the 'Graduate School of Life Science and Technology' and 'Graduate School of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine' programs under its College of Life Science and Technology to advance the field of advanced biology. It is striving to create breakthroughs for the virtuous cycle development of the biomedicine sector through comprehensive collaboration with local governments and new drug development corporations.
HLB Group is developing the innovative liver cancer treatment drug libozeranib and is undergoing the approval process with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after clinical trial phase 3. It is also strengthening investments in the development of treatments for degenerative diseases and businesses related to senior health, in line with the increasing elderly population. Recently, HLB invested 16 billion won in Neurotobe, a faculty start-up company of KAIST focused on new drug development, and acquired it as a subsidiary. The newly restructured HLB Neurotobe is officially challenging the development of treatments for hard-to-treat brain diseases such as Parkinson's disease, dystonia, and depression.
Jin Yang-gon, chairman of HLB Group, noted, "The collaboration between the two institutions will serve as an important milestone for HLB Neurotobe, which is developing treatments for representative hard-to-treat brain diseases such as Parkinson's disease and dystonia." He added, "We will grow HLB Neurotobe into a successful on-campus start-up model, sharing successful experiences and know-how to revitalize KAIST's start-up ecosystem, thereby creating a virtuous cycle where active open industry-academia investments in innovative technologies occur."
Kwang-hyung Lee, president of KAIST, emphasized, "Through this agreement, KAIST and HLB plan to actively collaborate on innovative new drug and technology development in the biomedicine sector, including the development of treatments for cancer and degenerative brain diseases." He stated, "By integrating science and technology with the pharmaceutical industry, we will contribute to improving human health and quality of life, and together prepare for and lead the future biomedicine era."