This treatment, which contains niclosamide as the main active pharmaceutical ingredient, can maintain a blood niclosamide concentration (IC50) to inhibit the proliferation of viruses such as the four serotypes of dengue virus, Zika, Chikungunya, and Yellow Fever, by 50%.
To effectively treat dengue fever, the antiviral must be administered early, before the viral load increases significantly. For early administration, the treatment must be effective not only against dengue fever but also against other mosquito-borne viral diseases with similar symptoms, such as Zika, Chikungunya, and Yellow Fever.
Leveraging its patented technology, Hyundai Bioscience has enhanced the bioavailability of niclosamide, enabling it to treat arbovirus infections caused by Zika, Chikungunya, and Yellow Fever viruses in addition to dengue fever. Recently, the company has succeeded in developing a "niclosamide-based multi-treatment for mosquito-borne viral infections" that can maintain an IC50 in the blood to inhibit the replication of these viruses.
Currently, there is no treatment for dengue fever. The dengue virus has four serotypes (DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, DENV-4), each with different IC50 values. The IC50 values for Zika, Chikungunya, and Yellow Fever viruses, which are also mosquito-borne, vary as well. Hyundai Bioscience's multi-treatment drug candidate is the world's first to maintain niclosamide's blood concentration above the IC50 value of all four serotypes of dengue virus as well as Zika, Chikungunya, and Yellow Fever viruses.
Hyundai Bioscience has formulated the multi-treatment antiviral into a tablet form to facilitate mass production and to make it convenient for transportation and storage.
Hyundai Bioscience has decided to conduct the dengue fever basket clinical trial in Brazil, the country most affected by dengue fever. Hyundai Bioscience USA will soon select a Contract Research Organization (CRO).
The dengue fever clinical trial, to be conducted by Hyundai Bioscience USA in Brazil, will use a basket clinical trial approach, differing from traditional clinical trial methods. This involves early administration of the multi-target antiviral to patients infected with mosquito-borne viruses, including the four serotypes of dengue virus, Zika, and Chikungunya, followed by evaluating the clinical efficacy in patients with confirmed dengue virus.
Kim Kyung-il, CEO of Hyundai Bioscience USA, stated, "With the development of a multi-treatment drug candidate capable of simultaneously treating various mosquito-borne viral infections such as dengue fever, we plan to conduct the basket clinical trial in Brazil as soon as possible. Through expedited regulatory processes in Brazil, we aim to supply the treatment at an affordable price to patients suffering from dengue fever worldwide."
About Hyundai Bioscience:
Hyundai Bioscience is a biotechnology company that develops new drugs based on its novel drug delivery system technologies to deliver active ingredients safely and efficiently to targeted areas of the human body. Founded in 2000, Hyundai Bioscience focuses on repurposing or expanding indications of existing drugs using its proprietary organic-inorganic hybrid technologies. Hyundai Bioscience is a public company listed on KOSDAQ (symbol: 048410) in South Korea.
