Bioplus Interphex Korea (BIX) 2023 opened at COEX, Seoul from July 12th to July 14th

Korea Bio Association and Reed Exhibition (RX) hosts Korea Bio Industry Comprehensive Convention

The current technological status presented at the ‘Rapidly Emerging Platform Technology-ADC, PROTAC & Carrier’ session

(From left) Jin-gun Bae, Vice President of InnoCure Therapeutics; Yong-joo Kim, CEO of LegoChem Bio; Lee Seung-joo, CEO of Orum Therapeutics; Koo Lee PhD, CEO of Therapex; 

Nak-hyun Bae, Drug Discovery Center Leader at Daewoong Pharmaceuticals; and Nam-joong Kim, Research Director at Prazer Therapeutics Research Institute. 

They participated in a panel debate on the 'Rapidly Emerging Platform Technology-ADC, PROTAC & Carrier' held at COEX, Seoul, on the morning of the 12th.

/Photo by reporter Kim Ji Won  

[“Sisa Journal E-reporter Kim Ji Won] “‘The Kiss of death’ or ‘the surgical strike’, is a tool that can completely cut out cancer.” 

Innocure Therapeutics Senior Vice President Jin-gun Bae made this statement at one of the conferences of ‘Bioplus Interphex Korea (BIX) 2023’, the ‘Rapidly Emerging Platform Technology-ADC, PROTAC & Carrier’ session, held at COEX at 10:30 a.m. on July 12th. 

In this specialized session, LegoChem Biosciences CEO Yong-joo Kim, Orum Therapeutics CEO Seung-joo Lee, Therapex CEO Koo Lee PhD, Daewoong Pharmaceuticals Drug Discovery Center Leader Nak-hyun Bae, and Prazer Therapeutics Research Institute Research Director Nam-joong Kim, talked about TPD technology including ADC and PROTAC as Senior Vice President Bae lead the discussion. 

“Proteolysis-targeting chimeras (PROTACs)” is emerging as a treatment standard. PROTAC is an example of a technology called targeted protein degradation (TPD). TPD is a platform technology that uses an intracellular proteolytic system to target and degrade disease-causing proteins. 

PROTAC degrades target proteins using the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), which not only regulates intracellular proteins but also facilitates protein synthesis degradation and control. PROTAC is expected to receive attention for its ability to target proteins that were previously inaccessible using existing approaches. 

In the past, small-molecular inhibiting agents were mainly used. They block the function of the protein related to the core mechanism causing the disease by binding to it. However, it is known that only 15% of the entire target can be accessed using this method. 

Instead, it was hoped that using TPD and PROTAC would solve this problem by binding to disease proteins that were difficult to access using preexisting methods. This is also why it’s called the "kiss of death" for undruggable targets. 

In addition, due to the function of promoting protein degradation, PROTAC is anticipated to have high potency even at low doses. The risk of side effects is expected to decrease compared to the existing method, which may cause side effects by binding to other molecules other than the target protein.  

"The concept of PROTAC first emerged in 2001, and there's been a lot of research going on in recent years," said Drug Discovery Center Leader Nak-hyun Bae, one of the speakers at the session. "In particular, TPD research has grown exponentially over the last five years." He said there has also been an increase in strategic interest in platform technology from big pharmaceutical companies. 

He also mentioned, “More than 20 PROTACs are currently undergoing clinical trials,” and that “there are more than 30 targeted proteins”. Therapex CEO Koo Lee PhD also explained that oral PROTAC discovery is currently active, with 16 out of the total 23 PROTACs that have entered clinical trials being oral.  

Mechanism of action and technology development process of PROTACs, companies conducting PROTAC-related research. / Graphic Designer: Eun-sil Kim 

Regarding the companies that are working on PROTAC-related development, CEO Lee said, “The leading companies in this field are Avinas, Nurix, C4 Therapeutics, and Kymera.” He added, “Among Korean companies, Uppthera, Therapex, Voronoi, Daewoong, and InnoCure Therapeutics are actively engaged in the research and development of PROTACs.” 

Regarding the research and development of PROTACs by Korean companies, he said, "As PROTAC represents a new modality, the burden of failure is likely to be significant," and that "Bold investments and recruitment of talented individuals with relevant experience are necessary." 

He added, “It would be good to have a consortium or to cooperate with those investigating PROTACs in Korea.” Drug Discovery Center Team Lead Bae also expressed high expectations for research collaboration related to PROTAC in Korea, saying, "Many companies will be able to create a platform technology through such collaboration." 

Meanwhile, BIX, hosted by the Korea Bio Association and Reed Exhibition (RX) Korea, is scheduled to take place at COEX, Seoul, from today until November 14th. It is a comprehensive biotechnology industry convention that brings together experts from various fields around the world. The convention consists of conferences where prominent figures in the biotechnology field inspire the industry and discuss current issues together. There are corporate exhibitions, partnering opportunities for biotech entrepreneurs, investors seeking new business pipelines, and an open innovation stage. 

Source: Sisa Journal E - the Future of Online Journalism (https://www.sisajournal-e.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=301520)