■ VORONOI said on the 27th that it presented phase 1 clinical data for VRN10 at the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference 2025, a global academic meeting co-hosted by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). VRN10 is a candidate currently in a phase 1a trial in Korea and Australia for patients with HER2 solid tumors. In the phase 1a results, tumor reduction was confirmed in three patients at the first antitumor assessment, and among them, a patient with HER2-mutant lung cancer achieved a complete response in the target lung lesion six weeks after dosing. In addition, no serious drug-related adverse events have been reported in any patient to date.
■ D&D Pharmatech said on the 27th that the primary endpoint and 12–24 week dosing results from the U.S. phase 2 trial of DD01, a therapy for metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis (MASH), were selected for a Late-Breaking Abstract oral presentation at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). DD01 is a long-acting dual agonist that the company developed to simultaneously target the GLP-1 and glucagon receptors, and a 48-week phase 2 trial in the United States is underway in patients with MASLD/MASH.
■ Xcell Therapeutics said on the 27th that it signed an exclusive distributor agreement in Malaysia with Biotek Abadi Sdn. Bhd, a Malaysian biotech distribution company, for its chemically defined medium product CellCor. Biotek Abadi is headquartered in Selangor, Malaysia, and has nationwide distribution and service infrastructure. It carries product lines across various fields including research, clinical, molecular biology, and diagnostics. Through this agreement, the company will secure a new foothold in Malaysia and strengthen its media supply chain to serve the Southeast Asian pharmaceutical and biotech market. Xcell Therapeutics currently has media distribution networks in Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Taiwan.
■ Celltrion said on the 27th that it worked with the local civic group Incheon Green Alliance to carry out wildlife bird protection activities by attaching bird-collision prevention stickers to transparent soundproof walls around Yeongjongdo in Incheon. Celltrion employees and local volunteers in Incheon participated in the activity, attaching stickers to sections of transparent soundproof walls installed along roads. Transparent soundproof walls are known structures that frequently cause collision accidents due to birds' lack of recognition, and this activity was conducted as a practical protective measure to mitigate bird injury incidents.
■ HLB bioStep said on the 27th that it signed an MOU with chiron, a Netherlands Organ-on-a-Chip platform company, to build a next-generation nonclinical testing platform to replace conventional animal testing. The collaboration aims to provide nonclinical testing services by combining chiron's Organ-on-a-Chip technology with HLB bioStep's capabilities in animal model preclinical studies. The two companies will exchange technologies and information for joint research and new service development.
■ AptaBio said on the 27th that it will participate in BIO-Europe 2025, to be held Nov. 3–5 (local time) in Vienna, Austria, to discuss technology transfer and joint development with global pharmaceutical companies and investors, focusing on its key pipelines. The company is developing APX-115 (Isuzinaxib), a therapy for diabetic kidney disease and acute kidney injury based on a Pan-NOX inhibition mechanism; ABF-101, an oral macular degeneration therapy with a Non-VEGF mechanism; and Apta-16, a hematologic cancer therapy based on its aptamer–drug conjugate (Apta-DC) platform.
■ Lotte Biologics said on the 27th that it will participate in CPHI Worldwide, to be held Oct. 28–30 (local time) in Frankfurt, Germany. This will be the company's fourth year at CPHI. Jang Geon-hee, head of technology development, will speak in an Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) seminar session, and at the exhibition booth, Jang Jun-young, head of Global BD, is scheduled to give an in-booth presentation.
■ Immunotherapy specialist MediMabBio said on the 27th that it raised 25.6 billion won in a series B round. MediMabBio is developing therapies for autoimmune diseases and immuno-oncology agents based on its proprietary bispecific antibody platform technology MediLink™. The company was founded by co-CEOs Kang Yuhoe and Cho Hong-seok, formerly of Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, and its core technology fuses immune-modulating cytokines to antibodies to precisely tune immune signaling. Its lead candidate, MFA031, is a fusion therapy combining an antibody targeting an immune receptor with a next-generation immunomodulatory cytokine, aiming to restore immune balance across various inflammatory diseases such as autoimmune disorders and organ transplant rejection.
■ Korea BMS said on the 27th that, to mark Global Patient Week, it carried out social contribution activities supporting cancer patients at home and abroad with voluntary participation by employees. Global Patient Week is a global campaign under BMS's vision of "Transforming patients' lives through science," reminding that patients are at the center of everything. The company continued its annual walking campaign Steps for Patients during Global Patient Week this year as well, raising donations for cancer patients.