JW Pharmaceutical, a Korean pharmaceutical company, said on Wednesday it signed a research agreement with Theraject Asia, a microneedle R&D company, to develop a microneedle-based hair loss treatment.

Under the agreement, JW Pharmaceutical's Drug Research Center will utilize Theraject Asia's advanced platform to innovate microneedle solutions for hair loss treatment.

Microneedle technology, often referred to as “adhesive injection,” is a percutaneous drug delivery method that uses ultra-fine needles, roughly one-third the width of a human hair, for the administration of drugs through the skin. It is gaining significant interest as a promising next-generation drug delivery system with the potential to replace traditional injections and oral medications.

The rapid resilience and cost-effective mass-production capabilities of microneedle-based drugs have accelerated the development of related pharmaceuticals, JW Pharmaceutical said.

Recent data from Future Market Insight, a market research firm headquartered in New York, showed that the global microneedle drug market is expected to grow from $621.6 million in 2019 to $1.23 billion by 2030. 

Jin Se-ho, Head of Raw Material Research Center at JW Pharmaceutical, said, "We are committed to formulating an optimal solution that can replace conventional injections, drawing upon Theraject Asia's microneedle patch technology.”

“By combining Theraject Asia's expertise in microneedle technology with JW Pharmaceutical's innovative drug development capabilities, we aim to provide patients with convenient and effective treatments."