JW Bioscience Obtains Domestic Patent for Sepsis Early Diagnosis Biomarker Specific Binding Antibody

Sepsis Diagnostic Kit Clinical Trials Underway
Approval Application Planned Within the Year

JW Life Science's research subsidiary JW Bioscience announced on the 28th that it has obtained a patent from the Korean Intellectual Property Office for two types of antibodies that specifically bind to WRS (tryptophan-tRNA synthetase), a biomarker capable of early diagnosis of sepsis.

This patent relates to "antibodies that specifically bind to WRS protein and their uses," and JW Bioscience explained that its purpose is to solidify rights to sepsis diagnostic technology utilizing the WRS biomarker.

WRS is a biomarker secreted into the blood earlier than substances such as TNF-alpha and interleukin-6 (IL-6), which are involved in treatment and defense during infections caused by external agents. According to a paper published in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases, WRS has been found to be more useful for early detection and mortality prediction than existing sepsis and inflammation diagnostic biomarkers such as procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), and IL-6.

JW Bioscience and CureBio Therapeutics jointly discovered a novel antibody that reacts to WRS through collaborative research and development. This antibody specifically reacts only to WRS and does not bind to other proteins, including ARS (aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase), the parent protein of WRS. Utilizing this, it is explained that sepsis and other infectious diseases can be diagnosed by incorporating the WRS-specific binding antibody into diagnostic kits.

JW Bioscience is the only company globally that holds the foundational technology for WRS and patents for WRS-specific binding antibodies. Prior to securing this patent, JW Bioscience received the foundational WRS technology from the Medical Bio Convergence Research Group in 2016 and obtained patents in Korea in 2017, the United States and Japan in 2020, and China and Europe in 2021. Currently, patents for two types of WRS-specific binding antibodies have also been filed in the United States, China, Japan, and Europe.

JW Bioscience is currently pursuing domestic approval for a sepsis diagnostic kit containing these antibodies. The company is accelerating the development of products including point-of-care diagnostic devices for rapid sepsis diagnosis. While existing sepsis diagnostic markers could only detect infections caused by bacteria, WRS is also activated by viruses and fungi, so it is expected to have high diagnostic value even for bacterial sepsis.

A JW Bioscience representative stated, "The registration of the patent for WRS biomarker-specific binding antibodies is a recognition of JW Bioscience's competitiveness in diagnostic device technology," adding, "As the only company worldwide holding patents related to WRS technology, we will succeed in commercializing diagnostic kits and strengthen our position in the global in vitro diagnostics market."

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