Samyang Holdings Corp. said it has entered into a joint research agreement with GenKOre, a local specialist in gene-editing technology, to develop innovative gene therapies by combining Samyang Holdings' gene delivery platform, SENS, with GenKOre’s gene-editing technology, TaRGET.

Under the accord, the two companies will focus on foundational studies to merge gene-editing technologies with advanced drug delivery systems. Following the validation of this combined approach, the two companies plan to advance to full-scale development of gene therapies.

Samyang Holdings’ SENS (Stability Enhanced NanoShell) platform is designed to deliver nucleic acid-based therapies and gene-editing drugs to specific cells within organs such as the liver, lungs, and spleen.

This drug delivery system (DDS) leverages cationic lipids and biodegradable polymers, allowing the platform to selectively target tissues while maintaining high efficacy and safety. One of the key advantages of the SENS platform is its capacity for repeated dosing.

GenKOre’s TaRGET (Tiny nuclease, augment RNA-based Genome Editing Technology) is a gene-editing tool that has shown promising results in developing therapies for rare diseases.

The platform secured an $800 million technology export contract with an unidentified U.S. pharmaceutical company in 2023.

"We are actively partnering with local and international companies that possess complementary gene technologies to our SENS platform," Samyang Holdings Biopharmaceutical Research Center Director Cho Hye-ryun said. "We anticipate that this collaboration with GenKOre, which boasts innovative gene-editing capabilities, will pave the way for the development of therapies that fundamentally address rare diseases."

Kim Yong-sam, co-CEO of GenKOre, also said, "For safe gene therapy development, it is crucial to have delivery technologies that are optimized for tissue specificity and gene-editing precision.”

By leveraging GenKOre's ultra-small gene-editing tools and Samyang Holdings' SENS technology, the company aims to accelerate the development of effective and safe gene therapies, Kim added.