Company selected for government research project, to receive funding across two phases
Biotech firm Vaxdyme has launched efforts to develop treatments for new and variant infectious diseases caused by RNA viruses.
The company, which works in biomaterials and vaccine development, was selected along with the Catholic University of Korea and Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine for a research and development project funded by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The project focuses on developing treatments for SARS coronavirus infection by targeting double-membrane vesicles (DMVs), a key platform in RNA virus replication. The goal is to secure antiviral treatment platform technology capable of addressing not only COVID-19 but also unknown future RNA virus infectious diseases, known as Disease X.
The joint research will be led by a team from the Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine under professors Seo Sang-wook and Shin Gu-cheol. A research team led by Professor Kim Gyun-hwan of Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine and Vaxdyme will participate as co-institutions. The three organizations plan to combine their expertise in basic virology and drug candidate discovery and evaluation to identify treatment candidates that precisely target DMVs — a central mechanism in RNA virus replication — and verify their efficacy and clinical potential.
In the first phase, spanning two years, 925 million won ($672,000) will be invested to focus on identifying lead candidates and conducting preclinical efficacy evaluations. If the project advances to the second phase based on those results, an additional 1.975 billion won in government funding will support the completion of R&D over another two years.
"To prepare in advance for unknown emerging infectious diseases, it is essential to secure not only a rapid vaccine platform but also treatment technology that can flexibly respond to mutations," Vaxdyme Chief Executive Kim Sung-jae said. "Through collaboration with both universities, we will demonstrate the potential to develop next-generation antiviral treatments."
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