Global expansion in sight for organoid leader CellArtgen

Seung-Woo Cho. CEO of CellArtgen (Yonsei University, Department of Biotechnology)

Aims to become a game changer based on its differentiated organoid technology

Recent changes in FDA regulations have positively impacted the sales of ECM (Electronic Contract Manufacturing) products and drug evaluation services

Aims to IPO by 2027, pursuing a two-track strategy based on aesthetic medical devices

Organoids, miniature organs composed of cells, are emerging as a technology to replace animal testing in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.
 With the field of organoids gaining attention, the activities of CellArtgen, which was founded by Cho Seung-woo, a leading expert in the field and professor at Yonsei University's Department of Biotechnology, have also been drawing attention.

 

Based on its core platform technology patents, the company has been expanding its presence by building advanced drug evaluation platforms, including the organoid disease platform 'ORANOSCREEN.’

Seung-Woo Cho.

 

CEO of CellArtgen (Professor of Biotechnology, Yonsei University)

CellArtgen was founded by Seung-Woo Cho, one of the world's leading experts in advanced biomaterials and organoid technology.

 

As the company was established with an academic foundation, the company's strong point lies in its extensive portfolio of proprietary technologies.

 

Dailypharm met with CellArtgen (a member of the KoreaBIO) to discuss the company's vision and strategy.

 

The technical strengths of the CellArtgen organoid platform lie in the integration of “extracellular matrix (ECM)-based microenvironment creation technology” and “microfluidics chip technology.” Cho explained, “We remove cells from tissues or organs and introduce the remaining ECM into organoid culture.

 

By using organ-specific ECM, we create an environment similar to actual organs, thereby enhancing the performance of organoids.” For example, to create heart organoids, the ECM matrix obtained from decellularized hearts is used to produce organoid models that not only include tissue-specific cellular components but also recapitulate the inherent microenvironment, including immune cells and vascular cells, on a standardized platform with high efficiency.

 

In particular, CellArtgen highlights its “multi-organoids-on-a-chip” technology, which connects organoids from multiple organs onto a single chip to mimic the human body's digestive, respiratory, and nervous systems.

 

Cho stated, “When direct interaction between organoids is required, we apply ‘assembloids,’ which combine different organoids.

 

The fact that we have independently secured ECM materials, organ chips, and multi-organ integration technology and integrated them into a single platform is the differentiating factor of CellArtgen’s technology.” FDA regulatory changes… organoid technology gains attention The company has been gradually increasing sales and expanding its customer portfolio based on its proprietary technology.

 

Last year, the first year of commercializing its technology, CellArtgen achieved sales of KRW 200 million, and this year, it expects sales of approximately KRW 3 billion by combining ECM products and organoid-based drug evaluation services.

 

The market environment is also becoming more favorable for CellArtgen.

 

The U.S.

 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed the mandatory animal testing requirement for new drug approvals at the end of 2022 and officially announced its plan to phase out animal testing last month, signaling changes in the new drug evaluation system.

 

According to Cho, in addition to the long-term regulatory changes, the overall sentiment of pharmaceutical companies is also changing.

 

He mentioned, “Pharmaceutical companies are showing more interest in organoid technology than before, and there is a growing movement on its practical use in the industry.

 

The change in the atmosphere is palpable.” Cho believes that changes may occur faster than expected, particularly because global pharmaceutical companies are taking more proactive steps than large Korean pharmaceutical companies.

 

Cho added, “Major pharmaceutical companies in the US and Europe have already made significant preparations, such as acquiring organoid companies and recruiting experts to form dedicated teams.

 

While domestic pharmaceutical companies are still observing the situation, CellArtgen is striving to secure a leading position in line with global trends.” He also noted that the extent to which CellArtgen, which is still a bioventure, can accumulate successful cases will serve as a benchmark for its strategy to survive the global competition.

 

In this regard, CellArtgen has already begun providing organoid model services for difficult-to-treat diseases such as MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis) and IPF (idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis) to domestic pharmaceutical companies, accumulating initial results.

 

Cho emphasized, “Some of the major domestic pharmaceutical companies that have utilized our services have expressed satisfaction to the extent that they have requested CellArtgen’s organoid experiment services again, and are currently preparing to forge long-term partnerships.

 

Since the service was launched less than a year ago, we have not yet accumulated many cases, but we plan to thoroughly accumulate domestic cases by the first half of next year and then begin full-scale cooperation with overseas big pharmas.” Two-track strategy of diversifying business for revenue while targeting IPO by 2027 However, while organoid services for new drug development have significant long-term potential, the company also faces the limitation of being difficult to generate substantial revenue in the short term.

 

In response, CellArtgen has adopted a realistic strategy.

 

The company has chosen to commercialize ECM materials, with a particular focus on expanding into the cosmetics and medical device sectors.  Cho explained, “While the company's ECM technology was originally developed for organoid culture, we identified its potential to achieve a certain level of regenerative therapy effects without cells and applied it to products for wound treatment and cosmetic purposes.

 

For example, skin ECM can be used as a wound treatment agent or in cosmetics or as skin boosters, while cartilage ECM can be utilized as a cartilage filler or a treatment material for osteoarthritis.” In other words, the company is pursuing a two-track strategy to simultaneously achieve short-term revenue and technological validation by applying ECM-based materials developed for organoid culture to wound dressings (wound treatments) and skin beauty injections.

 

While CellArtgen’s moves might seem like a bio-venture's foray into unfamiliar territory, the company is attracting attention for its technology, as evidenced by active discussions on development partnerships with major and mid-sized domestic pharmaceutical and biotech companies.

 

First, the company launched its ECM-based cosmetic brand, Cellumé, in the first half of the year and is currently collaborating with the cosmetics industry.

 

Cho stated, “A major domestic cosmetics ODM company has also taken notice of CellArtgen’s ECM raw material technology, conducted sample tests, and is currently requesting product supply.

 

Additionally, we have been selected as the finalist in an open innovation competition hosted by a top-tier domestic medical device company and have begun discussions on joint development of next-generation medical devices utilizing ECM.” CellArtgen is pursuing a business strategy centered on collaboration.

 

After demonstrating potential through the launch of its own brand, the company is placing emphasis on open innovation by partnering with capable companies.

 

In the medical device sector, the company is actively utilizing external projects while continuing its development.

 

CellArtgen aims to commercialize an ECM-based Class 2 wound dressing by the end of this year and then a Class 4 cartilage regeneration filler through government projects to launch it in 2027 after clinical trials.

 

With its dual focus on organoid services and ECM-applied products, CellArtgen plans to pursue an IPO on the KOSDAQ market around 2027.

 

The company aims to achieve sales of approximately KRW 3 billion this year, followed by KRW 5 billion in 2026, KRW 11 billion in 2027, and then KRW 50 billion by 2030.

 

More than half of this is expected to come from sales of the aforementioned ECM cosmetics and wound dressings.

 

However, while securing short-term sales and attracting investment is important, the company plans to maintain its identity as a regenerative therapy company based on its organoid platform technology, which is the company’s foundational technology that could revolutionize the paradigm of new drug development.

 

Cho added, “We believe that CellArtgen’s organoid model has global competitiveness in areas such as antifibrotic therapy and metabolic diseases, and our goal is to replace animal testing and become a game-changer in the regenerative medicine field.

 

We have a roadmap aimed at developing regenerative therapies for intractable liver diseases.”