Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Daewoong Bio, and Qutis Bio Sign Agreement to Develop Eco-Friendly Sustainable Drug Materials

From the left, Seungho Jeon, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical; Wonwoo Choi, CEO of Cutis Bio; Seongon Jin, CEO of Daewoong Bio.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwanju] Daewoong Pharmaceutical is accelerating its ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management through the development and commercialization of eco-friendly sustainable drug materials.

Daewoong Pharmaceutical announced on the 27th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Daewoong Bio and Cutis Bio on the "Development and commercialization of eco-friendly sustainable drug materials using synthetic biology technology and bio foundry."

Based on this agreement, they plan to develop drug materials through eco-friendly microbial biosynthesis process technology that can replace existing technologies based on chemical synthesis or animal-derived extraction, and to promote global commercialization.

Daewoong Pharmaceutical and Daewoong Bio will select candidate drugs that require conversion from petrochemical synthesis-based or animal-derived extraction-based drug materials to eco-friendly biosynthetic materials and evaluate their marketability. Cutis Bio will develop commercial strains and processes using synthetic biology technology and bio foundry to convert the selected candidates into eco-friendly sustainable materials.

Synthetic biology technology is an eco-friendly technology that uses organisms such as Escherichia coli and yeast during the synthesis process, unlike conventional petrochemical-based organic synthesis technology. It is attracting attention as a game changer in the decarbonization era by minimizing carbon dioxide emissions through biocatalysts and developing eco-friendly catalysts, thereby reducing waste such as organic solvents generated in conventional organic synthesis reactions.

Jeon Seung-ho, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, said, "We consider it meaningful to promote open collaboration with Cutis Bio based on synthetic biology technology as we continue to strengthen ESG management at Daewoong Pharmaceutical," adding, "If we secure synthetic biology technology through the development of eco-friendly drug materials, it will become a game changer that can replace the existing market of chemical synthesis-based technology."

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