[Edaily Reporter Kim Seung-kwon ] #LucasBio, a subsidiary of Boryung BioPharma, has jointly developed a memory T-cell therapy candidate for Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (SFTS) with the Korea Pasteur Institute and confirmed its antiviral efficacy in preclinical trials. Based on these results, the company plans to accelerate clinical development and the establishment of a national infectious disease response platform.

On the 3rd, Lucas Bio announced that “LB-DTK-SFTSV,” an SFTS-specific memory T-cell therapy candidate jointly developed with the Pasteur Institute of Korea, was confirmed to selectively eliminate cells actually infected with the SFTS virus.

SFTS is a high-risk infectious disease transmitted by hard ticks. In South Korea, the cumulative number of cases has exceeded 2,000 since it was designated a notifiable infectious disease in 2013, and the case fatality rate is known to be approximately 18%. To date, no vaccine or treatment has been approved.

After signing a joint research agreement last December, LucasBio was responsible for developing the therapeutic, while the Korea Pasteur Institute conducted preclinical efficacy evaluations in a Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) facility.

The evaluation results showed that “LB-DTK-SFTSV” exhibited antiviral activity by selectively recognizing and eliminating only cells infected with the SFTS virus, without affecting normal cells.

The company explained that these results confirm the potential of an antigen-specific memory T-cell-based therapeutic candidate that targets actual infected cells.

“LB-DTK-SFTSV” was developed using Lucas Bio’s proprietary “DTK (Direct Targeting Killer)” platform. A key feature is that SFTS-specific memory T cells were produced from healthy donors with no history of natural infection.

The company expects that this approach will enable it to shorten the drug development timeline in the event of future outbreaks of new or mutated infectious diseases, without the need to secure separate immune donors.

Based on these research findings, LucasBio plans to move toward clinical trials while also establishing a donor banking system to pre-manufacture and store memory T cells derived from healthy donors.

Jang Seung-ki, Director of the Korea Pasteur Institute, stated, “This study demonstrates the potential of a new immunotherapy strategy that directly targets cells infected with high-risk viruses,” adding, “We will continue our collaboration to establish a new paradigm for the development of treatments for infectious diseases.”