Sangkyun Lee, CEO of Creo ESG: "Accelerating Immuno-oncology Development... Confirming Potential for Treating Refractory Solid Tumors"

Expanding Beyond Vaccines into Immuno-Oncology: Diversifying the SUV-MAP Platform
Pursuing Joint Development and Technology Export with Global Pharmaceutical Companies

Sangkyun Lee, CEO of CreoSG.

Creo ESG is expanding its bio business, previously focused on infectious disease vaccines, into the field of immuno-oncology. By utilizing its proprietary viral vector platform, the company selectively targets cancer cells, while combining this with other therapeutic technologies to enhance intratumoral drug accessibility. Through these strategies, Creo ESG plans to accelerate the development of next-generation immuno-oncology therapies aimed at refractory solid tumors.

Sangkyun Lee, CEO of Creo ESG, stated in a recent interview, "Building on our accumulated research and development experience with recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV)-based vaccines, we are now expanding the application scope of our proprietary platform, SUV-MAP, into the realm of immuno-oncology." He added, "We are exploring new immuno-oncology treatment strategies by evaluating possibilities for collaboration and combination with established technologies."

The SUV-MAP platform under development at Creo ESG utilizes a VSV vector with attenuated interferon inhibitory function. In normal cells, viral proliferation is limited by interferon-mediated defense mechanisms. However, in cancer cells with impaired interferon defense, the virus can selectively propagate, leading to the elimination of cancer cells. The company’s strategy also involves incorporating cytokine genes that activate the human immune system to further enhance antitumor effects.

The current stage involves confirming the platform's mechanism of action and specifying development candidates. CEO Lee explained, "We have identified key mechanisms of action through various experiments thus far," adding, "We are concretizing development candidates by optimizing the platform and conducting additional research on target gene applications."

Creo ESG is particularly focused on the tumor microenvironment. Tumor tissues are known to form dense stromal structures containing substances like hyaluronic acid, making it difficult for therapeutics to penetrate deep into the tumor. To tackle this, Creo ESG is pursuing combination strategies to lower these physical barriers and enhance the accessibility of SUV-MAP to cancer cells.

CEO Lee stated, "We anticipate that by combining the SUV-MAP immuno-oncology therapy with technologies that can loosen the dense structure inside tumors, SUV-MAP will more easily access cancer cells." He continued, "If this approach proves effective in practice, the SUV-MAP that enters the tumor could proliferate autonomously and induce a cascading destruction of surrounding cancer cells."

The ultimate goal is to develop SUV-MAP into an immuno-oncology agent that can be used as a monotherapy. At the same time, the company is keeping open the possibility of developing it as a platform that can be combined with existing anticancer drugs or other therapeutic technologies to further enhance treatment efficacy.

CEO Lee remarked, "Creo's immuno-oncology agent is innovative in that it utilizes proprietary technology as a platform," and added, "We expect independent antitumor effects in monotherapy and are also evaluating the feasibility of combination therapies with existing anticancer agents."

In addition to immuno-oncology, Creo ESG is also accelerating clinical entry and commercialization efforts in its vaccine business. The company has developed SUV-MAP–based candidates for a wide range of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, Zika, MERS, SFTS, and Hantavirus. Recently, it has also been pursuing the development of preventive vaccines for rotavirus and dengue virus by integrating artificial intelligence-based protein design technologies with its proprietary vaccine platform.

Moving forward, the company plans to prioritize clinical development of candidates with established market potential. CEO Lee explained, "For certain vaccine candidates such as those against Hantavirus and SFTS, which already have established markets, we plan to advance them from preclinical to clinical trials and ultimately develop them into fully realized vaccines." He emphasized, "Through this, we aim to help actual patients while also securing profitability."

Global market entry is also a major objective. Creo ESG is seeking to expand its vaccine business in countries and regions with high demand for infectious disease prevention. CEO Lee noted, "There is interest in MERS in Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia and in Southeast Asia, while interest in Zika is high in Brazil and other regions." He added, "For Ebola, there is interest not only in Africa but also in Europe, so we are maintaining regular contact with relevant institutions."

Investments to bolster research and development capabilities in the bio business are ongoing as part of the company’s long-term strategy. Creo ESG has increased its development efficiency not by conducting all R&D and production in-house, but by actively leveraging external infrastructure—collaborating with international vaccine institutes, universities, domestic bio research centers, and government R&D projects.

CEO Lee stressed, "It is difficult for a small venture company to develop all capabilities internally, so we have established collaborative relationships with various research organizations at home and abroad to create a system spanning from R&D to preclinical and clinical development." He continued, "Once sufficient profitability is ensured, we plan to expand our R&D competence and establish capabilities for both large-scale production and evaluation, moving beyond small-scale operations."

Creo ESG also intends to actively pursue possibilities for joint development and technology transfer in the immuno-oncology field. CEO Lee stated, "Our goal is to advance our immuno-oncology agent to a level where it can be used as a standalone therapy." He added, "We believe there is strong market potential for combination treatment as well, so we are open to development collaborations or technology out-licensing opportunities with multinational pharmaceutical companies that already possess anticancer agents."

By expanding its rVSV platform technology, accumulated through infectious disease vaccine development, into immuno-oncology, Creo ESG aims to secure new growth drivers. In the vaccine sector, the company plans to establish a revenue base through clinical advancement and commercialization. In immuno-oncology, the strategy is to refine the anticancer effects of its proprietary platform, prove synergies with combination technologies, and ultimately advance toward joint development and technology transfer with global pharmaceutical companies.

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