CHA Biotech has launched a study to enhance the anticancer efficacy of its natural killer (NK) cell therapeutic drug by making the most of polymer, a cationic compound.

The cationic compounds used in the study are synthetic polymers, in which monomers, molecules with low molecular weight, are repeatedly bonded together.

Professor Park Kyung-soon of the Department of Biomedical Sciences at CHA University College of Medicine and colleagues searched for compounds that enhance the function of NK cells and found that co-culturing NK cells with certain synthetic polymers increased the anticancer efficacy of NK cells in mouse models of triple-negative breast and ovarian cancer.

The study results were published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer (JITC) by the U.S. Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) in August 2022.

CHA Biotech said it would transfer the medium composition of Professor Park's team for research purposes and conduct research to improve the anticancer efficacy of NK cells. The company plans to develop NK cell therapeutics into culture conditions containing synthetic polymers and check whether the anticancer efficacy of NK cells in blood and solid cancers is increased.

"The substances utilized in this study are safe and approved by the U.S. FDA," said Lee Hyun-jung, CEO for R&D. "We will be able to develop further new therapies that can effectively increase the anticancer effect of NK cells."

CHA Biotech said it is strengthening its NK cell therapy pipeline by signing material transfer agreements with various domestic and foreign organizations to develop NK cell therapy combination therapies. To enhance the therapeutic effect of NK cells, CHA Biotech is conducting various studies, including enhancing the function of NK cells themselves, antibody combination therapy, and developing CAR-NK cell therapy using CAR (Chimeric Antigen Receptor).