Shaperon Registers Global Patent for Platform-Type Inflammasome-Inhibiting Novel Drug Substance

On February 19, Shaperon announced that it has registered a substance patent in Australia for a new class of next-generation inflammasome-inhibiting compounds, developed by advancing its GPCR19-based key material that had been validated through previous research.

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This patent covers a group of compounds designed and synthesized on the backbone of the GPCR19 agonist "NuGel," which is currently being used in a Phase 2 clinical trial in the United States for patients with atopic dermatitis. Through this, Shaperon has begun in earnest to expand the global IP portfolio of its inflammation-modulating platform technology and has laid the groundwork for future indication expansion and the development of various formulations.

The registered substance patent goes beyond the protection level of a single candidate and is a platform-type substance patent that encompasses an entire group of hundreds of derivative compounds sharing the core GPCR19 structure as a common motif. The patent is regarded as a defensive global IP strategy that preemptively includes newly derived structural compounds from subsequent research and development within its scope of rights, fundamentally blocking competitors' attempts at design-around strategies.

This compound group has a mechanism that simultaneously controls TNF-α production and IL-1β production induced during the inflammasome activation process. In other words, by modulating the GPCR19-P2X7-NLRP3 signaling axis, it is a platform technology that controls both the initiation and amplification phases of the inflammatory response. These characteristics suggest potential for expansion into a wide range of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, including atopic dermatitis, COVID-19, and Alzheimer's disease.

The patent has been filed simultaneously in major markets including Australia, Korea, the United States, China, Japan, Europe, and Canada, and examination and registration procedures are being carried out sequentially in each country. Through a multilayer IP structure that links composition, formulation, use, and biomarker patents, Shaperon plans to build a structural entry barrier centered on the core substance patent and to strengthen its strategic competitiveness in global technology transfer and co-development negotiations, based on a long-term patent protection system extending into the 2040s.

A Shaperon representative said, "This global substance patent will serve as an opportunity to systematically expand the rights of our GPCR19-based inflammation-modulating platform beyond the protection of a single candidate," adding, "We will develop it into a long-term exclusive IP asset that can be widely utilized for future indication expansion, subsequent pipeline development, and global technology transfer."

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