​CKD Bio opens microbiome research center at university hospital to develop treatments for dementia

By Kim Joo-heon Posted : December 23, 2022, 17:28 Updated : December 23, 2022, 19:57

[Gettyimages Bank]

SEOUL -- To develop various treatments using microorganisms living in human bodies, CKD Bio, a pharmaceutical company in South Korea, has opened a microbiome research center at a university hospital in Seoul. The company will create a consortium to work on drugs for dementia, liver disease and inflammatory bowel disease. 
 
The microbiome is a cluster of all types of microscopic organisms that co-exist with humans such as bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses. Many of them live inside the body of animals and the types of the microbiome that form herds vary depending on people's physical condition. Since it is closely related to health, the microbiome is being widely researched globally.
 
CKD Bio said the research center was opened on December 20 at Yonsei University Health System. The bio company adopted smart analysis equipment capable of automatically evaluating candidate materials. "The development of microbiome-based treatments is underway in South Korea and abroad mainly for metabolic diseases and neurologic disorders," an unnamed CKD Bio official said in a statement.
 
South Korea is nurturing its microbiome industry with full government support to establish an industrial microbiome ecosystem and build a state microbiome big data center. In August 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs unveiled a project to build a microbiome resource center in Sunchang some 244 kilometers (152 miles) south of Seoul to create a database of microorganisms.
 
The database in Sunchang will be shared with various sectors including the medical and food sectors to help enterprises beef up their capabilities. Some 3,500 microbiome samples will be collected from the soil, plants, animal feces, and food by 2023. Collected data will be shared with related industries to help the development of new technologies and products.
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