Hyundai Bioscience released a report on December 8th that CP-COV03, its new COVID-19 oral drug candidate, successfully demonstrated a 100% inhibitory concentration level in the blood (IC100) for 12 hours against viral activity with a single administration. This pharmacokinetics study was recently performed with Knotus, a non-clinical research organization. CP-COV03 is a Niclosamide-based modified oral drug developed by CNPharm, a bio tech company holding major shares of Hyundai Bioscience.

Hyundai Bioscience reported that, in early January 2021, it will take CP-COV03 to an efficacy testing against COVID-19 with the Korea Zoonosis Research Institute (KoZRI) of Jeonbuk National University, which will be funded by the Korean government. After the efficacy testing, Hyundai Bioscience plans to go for phase 2 clinical trials and then apply for emergency use approval.

Niclosamide has attracted attention from medical and pharmaceutical societies to the point that the Institut Pasteur Korea ranks it first among many candidate drugs for the treatment of COVID-19. However, Niclosamide's low bioavailability and poor inhibitory concentration level against viral activity kept it from being repositioned as a treatment for COVID-19.

Despite its excellent antiviral efficacy, Niclosamide is known to have too low of a bioavailability by oral administration, and by injection it is too difficult to maintain an effective inhibitory concentration level for even an hour. The results of this study by Hyundai Bioscience are drawing much attention from the pharmaceutical industry because until now, among the Niclosamide-based COVID-19 oral treatment candidates, there has never been a case of maintaining an IC100 level for 12 hours.

In October, Hyundai Bioscience already confirmed the solution to the problem of low bioavailability by revealing CP-COV03's Cmax level, which was 12.5 times higher than that of existing Niclosamide. Through recent developments that realize a 100% antiviral effective blood concentration for 12 hours, the expectation that COVID-19 can be treated by taking pills or capsules twice a day has increased.

When oral treatments and pills for COVID-19 are made available, the path to self-treatment may become a reality while the world is facing a third wave of the pandemic. It is also raising expectations that the medical crisis, such as the shortage of ICU facilities due to the rapid increase in COVID-19 patients, can be resolved.

About Hyundai Bioscience

HYUNDAI BIOSCIENCE is a biotechnology company that develops and commercializes bio-fusion technology with the purpose of delivering active ingredients safely and efficiently to targeted areas of the body. Hyundai Bioscience's Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Technology is a novel drug delivery system technology that allows the selective and effective delivery of active substances on the target area in combination with bio-friendly delivery vehicles. Applying its technology in the fields of tumor-targeted drugs and even skincare, Hyundai Bioscience will continue to expand its business scope by introducing innovative biotechnology and new effective products.