Immunology

[Cambridge, MA / Research Triangle Park, NC / Seoul, Korea – June 4, 2024] Hudson Therapeutics announced that Shaperon (378800, CEO Seung-Yong Seong), an innovative biopharmaceutical company specializing in immune therapeutics, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on May 28th with Dongkook Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. at their headquarters in Seoul, Korea for the joint research and development of ‘inflammaging’ products. Leveraging Shaperon’s advanced science capabilities in immune-mediated inflammation and Dongkook Pharmaceutical’s expertise in the beauty market, the two companies plan to develop cosmetics and skin boosters aimed at improving skin aging and wrinkles using inflammation complex inhibitors.

‘Inflammaging,’ a combination of ‘inflammation’ and ‘aging,’ refers to aging caused by inflammatory responses. This term is already widely used in advanced countries for anti-aging product lines. Shaperon’s immune complex inhibitors play a role in suppressing inflammatory responses by targeting the highest known regulators when numerous inflammatory signals stimulate cells. This offers a broader anti-inflammatory effect compared to existing approaches. Through this mechanism, it is possible to suppress skin inflammation, prevent aging, and improve wrinkles.

Shaperon is developing new drugs for inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis and dementia using immune complex inhibitors. They possess numerous inflammation complex inhibitory substances and plan to select the most suitable ones for skin inflammation-related aging for joint development. Shaperon was ranked 8th globally for the competitiveness of its immune complex inhibitors by Venture Radar.

"This partnership with Dongkook Pharmaceutical represents an exciting opportunity for Shaperon to expand its global presence and deliver innovative solutions to address skin aging and inflammation," said Dr. Seung-Yong Seong, CEO of Shaperon. "We are looking forward to leveraging our combined strengths to develop products that cater not only to the Korean market but also to partners in the US and European markets. By combining our advanced scientific capabilities, we are confident in our ability to develop groundbreaking products that will make a meaningful impact in worldwide."