CINCINNATI, March 23, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Orange Grove Bio, a drug investment and development firm, today announced that it has established new strategic collaborations with the Yonsei University Health System (YUHS) and Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) designed to strengthen the biotechnology entrepreneurial ecosystem in South Korea. Importantly, these collaborations represent Orange Grove Bio’s first international partnerships, highlighting a strategic geographic expansion of the company’s efforts to harness the significant research potential found in universities and academic medical centers outside of the United States.
Under terms of the partnerships, Orange Grove Bio will work with YUHS and POSTECH to advance the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics by supporting the translation of scientific discoveries made by researchers within the respective universities. Orange Grove Bio will work collaboratively with each group to identify and support opportunities for company creation and drug development in the areas of oncology, as well as autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. As part of the effort, Orange Grove Bio will spearhead educational programming and entrepreneurial initiatives for researchers, including faculty and students, at both YUHS and POSTECH. Specifically, Orange Grove Bio will implement graduate internship programs at the universities, offering guidance and real-world experience in the biotech industry by working directly with the firm and its portfolio companies.
“While Orange Grove Bio’s initial efforts have been focused on collaborating with universities and academic centers within the U.S., the reality is there are a broad array of excellent ex-US opportunities through which to pursue our model of harnessing medical technology innovation from markets beyond the traditional hubs of Boston and San Francisco. As we began to expand our thinking internationally, Yonsei University Health System and POSTECH both immediately rose to the top of our list of priority targets,” said Marc Appel, Orange Grove Bio’s chief executive officer. “With this in mind, we are excited to align with these institutions of excellence and look forward to supporting the talented researchers that are advancing cutting edge science within their laboratories.”
Orange Grove Bio’s mission is to develop new therapeutic options for patients by harnessing the significant research potential found in universities and academic medical centers across the United States and internationally. Orange Grove Bio fosters strong relationships with technology transfer offices outside of the traditional medical technology hubs of Boston and San Francisco. Collectively, Orange Grove Bio’s team possesses decades of drug development and company creation experience, allowing it to build and finance innovative programs from the research and development stage to clinical trials.
With these latest academic collaborations, Orange Grove Bio is laying the foundation for serving as a bridge between the biotechnology industries in the U.S. and Korea. With this broadened, international reach, the firm aims to build innovative companies that combine capabilities from both countries and that are ultimately positioned to leverage the U.S. capital markets for financial support. To this end, Orange Grove Bio has already established a partnership with SV Investment, a Korea-based venture capital and private equity firm, designed to assist in putting in place strong investment syndicates to support the creation and growth of these companies.
Orange Grove Bio worked closely alongside its partner SV Investment to identify the opportunities to partner with YUHS and POSTECH. The team at SV Investment was particularly involved in fostering discussions between the groups and helping drive the collaboration agreements to completion.
Seo Lee, SV Investment’s director, stated, “We are driven by a philosophy focused on establishing robust international investment networks to support the best and brightest researchers in Korea, as well as those internationally. This was a key driver of our decision to establish a partnership with Orange Grove Bio to jointly cultivate the biotech landscape in both Korea and the U.S. Together, we have made important strides in this effort and it is exciting to see that our ongoing relationship was an important contributor to the signing of these new collaborations with YUHS and POSTECH.”
About Orange Grove Bio
Orange Grove Bio (OGB) is a capital allocation and asset development biotech company. OGB partners with universities, academic medical centers, and entrepreneurs to develop innovative treatments for important diseases, particularly cancer and immune disorders. Learn more at: www.orangegrovebio.com
About Yonsei University Health System
Yonsei University Health System (YUHS) is the first modern medical institution in South Korea, and it has been a leading medical institution in the country for more than 130 years. Severance Hospital and Yonsei University College of Medicine are part of the Yonsei University Health System. Severance Hospital operates around 2,437 beds across five general hospitals: the Yonsei Cancer Hospital, Rehabilitation Hospital, Cardiovascular Hospital, Eye Hospital, and Children’s Hospital and pursues to be the world’s No.1 leader of medical treatment and patient care. And, YUHS continuously spreads the knowledge and experience to the global society in the field of healthcare and medical service. Accordingly, Yonsei University Health System, is intimately communicating and collaborating with global society based on their professional knowledge and experience to guarantee universal health and improve health inequalities around the world: https://yuhs.severance.healthcare/yuhs-en/index.do
About Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH)
Founded in 1986, POSTECH has lit a spark in the nation’s higher education and scientific research community to become a crown jewel as a top research university specializing in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Today, POSTECH shines bright as a beacon that guides brilliant minds around the world to POSTECH for advanced studies. For more information about POSTECH, see http://www.postech.ac.kr/eng/.
