Daewoong Pharmaceutical Signs Technology Transfer Agreement for "Liver Organoid" with KRIBB

Adoption of "Mini Liver" Technology That Replicates Human Liver Function

On July 15, Daewoong Pharmaceutical announced that it had recently signed a technology transfer agreement with the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology to introduce "liver organoid production and drug evaluation technology." Liver organoids are miniaturized liver organs developed by culturing stem cells and other materials to mimic human liver function, and are also known as "mini livers."

Kwon Seok-yoon, Director of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (left), and Park Sungsoo, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, are signing a "Liver Organoid Production and Drug Evaluation Technology Transfer Agreement" at the Magok Research Center. Daewoong Pharmaceutical

The signing ceremony for the technology transfer agreement, held at Daewoong Pharmaceutical's Magok Research Center, was attended by Seongsu Park, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Seokyun Kwon, Director of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, and other key officials from both sides.

Daewoong Pharmaceutical introduced the "three-dimensional human liver organoid production and toxicity evaluation platform" developed by Dr. Myungjin Son's team at the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology. Through this, the company aims to respond to the global trend, especially led by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), of reducing animal testing and expanding the use of alternative testing methods.

Conventionally, two-dimensional hepatocytes have been widely used in the pharmaceutical industry to evaluate new drug candidates. However, these cells differ structurally from actual organs in the body, which limits their ability to accurately predict drug toxicity. In contrast, the institute's three-dimensional liver organoids precisely replicate not only human liver tissue but also the "intrahepatic bile duct" structure responsible for bile acid secretion. According to the company, this enables improved accuracy in preclinical evaluation of liver toxicity—something that has been difficult to confirm even through animal tests.

According to Daewoong Pharmaceutical, the organoids can be continuously proliferated long-term and retain their function even after freezing and thawing. This has resolved the most significant challenge in the organoid field—mass production—positioning the company closest to commercialization.

This technology was the first in the world to be selected for both the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Test Guideline Project (DRP) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) New Work Item Proposal for international standards. It is currently undergoing international expert review, and through the relevant procedures, the techniques could be established as internationally recognized test standards.

With the introduction of this technology, Daewoong Pharmaceutical plans to further advance its non-clinical evaluation system beyond international standards and significantly strengthen its competitiveness in global new drug development. By precisely screening for liver toxicity in drug candidates at the non-clinical stage, the company aims to increase the success rate of new drug research and development (R&D) and reduce both costs and development time.

Seongsu Park, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, stated, "A research platform capable of providing more precise evaluation of candidate substances is essential to accelerate and improve the efficiency of new drug development." He added, "Based on our strong partnership with the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, we will continue to refine our liver organoid technologies and do our utmost to deliver tangible results in the field of drug development."

Seokyun Kwon, Director of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, said, "Our institute's original three-dimensional organ-mimicking technology has now been combined with Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s new drug development capabilities, and is being put to practical use in the industry." He continued, "We hope that this agreement will become a best-practice model of collaboration between public research institutions and the pharmaceutical industry, with basic research from the public sector contributing to industrial new drug development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.