JW Creagene said Thursday that it has obtained a patent for its source technology to produce dendritic cells and how to use them, from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Dendritic cells direct T cells, which are responsible for immunity within the body, to attack specific cells such as cancer cells and can be developed into various treatments depending on antigens.

JW Creagene has a cytoplasmic transduction peptide CTP), which effectively transports antigen to dendritic cells, and is developing Creavax, immunotherapy, using the technology. The company is conducting phase 3 clinical trial for CreaVax-HCC, a liver cancer treatment, and phase 1 and 2 clinical trials for CreaVax-BC, a glioblastoma treatment.

"By obtaining the U.S. patent for dendritic cell-based anticancer vaccine manufacturing method, the company expects to create new added value such as technology export," JW Creagene CEO Lee Kyung-joon said. "As we have proven our technology in America, the world's largest bio-market, we will try harder to present a new paradigm in the area of immune cell therapy."