The Lim Sung-ki Foundation will provide 600 million won in research funding to Catholic University College of Medicine Professor Cho Mira, who is developing a treatment for intractable systemic sclerosis.
The Lim Sung-ki Foundation said on the 27th that it has finally selected Cho as a recipient of the 2025 rare and intractable disease research support program. In May, Cho identified mitochondrial pathology in immune cells and fibrotic cells with overexpressed CD38 protein in systemic sclerosis and proposed to the foundation research to develop a combination therapy to control it, leading to the final selection. Cho will receive up to 200 million won per year in research funding for three years from the foundation.
Systemic sclerosis is a rare and intractable disease with no fundamental treatment. It causes thickening, sclerosis, and inflammation of the skin and organs, and can be fatal if it leads to respiratory failure and heart failure, but patients currently depend only on fibrosis-delaying drugs.
With the Lim Sung-ki Foundation's support, Cho plans to study ways to normalize mitochondrial function and control inflammatory and fibrotic activation responses. To that end, the goal is to identify mitochondrial dysfunction caused by reverse electron transport (RET) and the main mechanism of action of the CD38 protein by targeting T and B cells and fibroblasts, which are the target cells that cause pathology in systemic sclerosis.
Cho said, "I will place the Lim Sung-ki Foundation's philosophy of 'respect for humanity' at the center of my research," adding, "The combination therapy strategy of this study will block the root causes based on multiple targets and simultaneously achieve regeneration and recovery of damaged tissue, presenting a new paradigm for treating systemic sclerosis."
#Established to carry on the new drug development philosophy and legacy of the late founder Lim Sung-ki of Hanmi Pharmaceutical Group, the Lim Sung-ki Foundation has been running an annual 400 million won research support program for researchers in rare and intractable diseases since 2022.
Lim Sung-ki Foundation Chair Kim Chang-su said, "The field of rare disease treatment can only truly advance when it overcomes the economic logic of 'time and expense' and solid, stable, and sustainable support is provided from basic research," adding, "We will realize the lifelong teachings of 'respect for humanity' and 'new drug development' practiced by Chairman Lim through the foundation's research support program."