Daewoong to Collaborate with NeuroLive on New Antidepressant Drug Development

Oral Therapeutic 'NR-0601' Clinical Trial Goals for Next Year

Daewoong Pharmaceutical (top) and Neurolive logos (Photo by Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Neurolive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Daewoong Pharmaceutical announced on the 28th that it signed a joint research and development (R&D) agreement for a new antidepressant candidate with Neurolive on the 27th. Through this agreement, Daewoong Pharmaceutical plans to jointly develop 'NR-0601,' a multi-target non-narcotic oral antidepressant, and enter the depression treatment market.

Neurolive is a bio-venture company researching central nervous system diseases such as depression and Alzheimer's. Among its depression pipeline, NR-0601 is the first new drug under development. NR-0601 is an oral antidepressant derived using Neurolive's drug screening platform, which sends electrical signals to living brain tissue to observe neuronal responses. It has a multi-target mechanism of action, expected to provide faster and stronger recovery effects from depression compared to existing monoamine-based oral antidepressants. Additionally, it is characterized by an increased potential to act on treatment-resistant depression (TRD), which occurs in about one out of three patients with major depressive disorder who do not respond to existing treatments.

Under this agreement, both companies will maintain a cooperative relationship throughout the preclinical and clinical development stages of NR-0601, which is scheduled to enter clinical trials early next year. Daewoong Pharmaceutical will be responsible for formulation improvement research, process development and quality control (CMC), good manufacturing practice (GMP) production of clinical trial drugs, and clinical trial consultation. Neurolive will handle non-clinical development and testing, discussions with regulatory agencies such as the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, investigational new drug (IND) application, and clinical development.

Seungho Jeon, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, said, “We are encouraged to collaborate with Neurolive on the development of an advanced antidepressant.” He added, “Through the development of next-generation antidepressants, we hope to help manage mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and stress faced by modern people.” Seokchan Lee, CEO of Neurolive, also stated, “This collaboration brings us one step closer to realizing our dream of developing competitive global pharmaceuticals,” and added, “Through the development of antidepressants, patients with depression, which is increasing worldwide, will regain the happiness they have lost.”

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