K-MEDI hub (Daegu Gyeongbuk Medical Foundation Innovation, Chairman GuSun Park) has announced that K-MEDI hub and the global non-profit medical research organization Drugs for Neglected Disease initiative (DNDi) have initiated a collaborative R&D project to develop a new treatment for onchocerciasis, a neglected tropical disease. The project aims to develop a molecule named oxfendazole as a safe, effective, affordable, and globally accessible treatment for onchocerciasis – also known as river blindness – and other related filarial diseases, thus contributing to improving global health.
Onchocerciasis is the second leading cause of infectious blindness worldwide. It is caused by parasitic worms transmitted by the bite of blackflies that live in areas near fast-flowing rivers. It can cause severe itching, disfiguring skin conditions, and blindness or impaired vision. 19 million people are infected with the disease, including 1.15 million who have lost eyesight. 99% of people affected by the disease live in West and Central Africa.
In this project, DNDi serves as the principal investigator, while K-MEDI hub participates as a collaborating institution. This R&D initiative is supported by the Research Investment for Global Health Technology Foundation (RIGHT Foundation), with a total of KRW 3.2 billion (approx. EUR 2.2 million) over a period of 2.5 years.
DNDi will oversee overall management of the project, leveraging its extensive international experience in developing treatments for neglected diseases and managing international partnerships.
K-MEDI hub will apply its expertise in formulation development to develop a drug product for onchocerciasis and establish a scalable production process that meets global pharmaceutical standards.
This project represents a model of international collaboration, combining DNDi’s global network with K-MEDI hub’s public-oriented mission and robust R&D capabilities. It is expected to contribute to global health equity by advancing the development of a new safe, effective, affordable, and globally accessible treatment for onchocerciasis.
Established in 2003 by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Institut Pasteur, and four leading medical research institutes in neglected disease-endemic countries, DNDi is a non-profit international research organization dedicated to developing new treatments for neglected diseases. Through partnerships with global pharmaceutical companies and research institutes, DNDi has dedicated itself to addressing healthcare disparities, and has discovered, developed, and delivered 13 new treatments for six neglected diseases over the past 20 years.
As a public research institute that supports the entire range of pharmaceutical R&D – from formulation development to GMP-certified production – K-MEDI hub’s Drug Manufacturing Center aims to use this project as an opportunity to expand its reach internationally and secure growth momentum as a strategic partner in the global pharmaceutical market.
The RIGHT Foundation is the first international public-private partnership funding agency in Korea, jointly established in 2018 by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Gates Foundation, and Korean life science companies. It supports R&D projects that help alleviate the disproportionate burden of infectious diseases on low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), thereby contributing to global health equity. To date, the foundation has supported 70 research projects with a total funding of 107.7 billion KRW.
Dr Luis Pizarro, Executive Director of DNDi, said: ‘Thanks to K-MEDI’s expertise and RIGHT Foundation support, we are hopeful we can deliver urgently needed treatments to the millions of people affected by river blindness. We need to address the gap in current treatments, and developing effective, targeted test-and-treat approaches with macrofilaricidal drugs like oxfendazole will be critical in reaching the WHO’s goal of eliminating this terrible and debilitating disease.’
GuSun Park, the chairman of K-MEDI hub, remarked: ‘It is deeply meaningful to participate in a project that realizes public value based on our research and development capabilities,’ and added, ‘As a public institution operating under the authority of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, we are committed to successfully developing treatments for neglected diseases and contributing to global health.’
The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated 21 diseases as neglected tropical diseases, including onchocerciasis, leishmaniasis, and human sleeping sickness. Over 1 billion people are affected by these diseases, posing a major threat to public health.
Due to the low prevalence of neglected diseases in high-income countries and limited commercial potential for associated treatments, the pharmaceutical industry’s interest and investment in such diseases have historically been minimal. This international collaboration among the three institutions is expected to help address that gap.
About DNDi
The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is a not-for-profit medical research organization that discovers, develops, and delivers safe, effective, and affordable treatments for neglected populations. DNDi is developing medicines for sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, river blindness, mycetoma, dengue, paediatric HIV, cryptococcal meningitis, and hepatitis C. Its research priorities include children’s health; gender equity and gender-responsive R&D; and diseases impacted by climate change. Since its creation in 2003, DNDi has collaborated with public and private partners worldwide to deliver twelve new treatments for six deadly diseases, saving millions of lives. dndi.org
Media contact
Frédéric Ojardias (in Geneva)
+41 79 431 62 16
fojardias@dndi.org
Photo credit: Ley Uwera-DNDi
