Gyeonggi Province and EU Launch Joint Research on COVID-19 Treatment Including Raloxifene

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park Nohun] Gyeonggi Province and research institutions supported by the European Union held their first working video conference as they pursue joint research on developing COVID-19 treatments utilizing "raloxifene," an osteoporosis treatment drug confirmed to be effective in suppressing the coronavirus.

According to Gyeonggi Province on the 23rd, the province and the Gyeonggi Economy and Science Advancement Foundation (hereinafter GESAF) held a video conference on the 22nd in accordance with the "Korea-EU International Joint Development Agreement on COVID-19 Therapeutics" concluded on the 17th of last month, during which experts from both countries exchanged opinions on preclinical/clinical research on raloxifene and supercomputing-based COVID-19 therapeutic development.

From Korea, Science and Technology Division Chief Choi Byung-gil of Gyeonggi Province, Chief Researcher Jung Gwi-wan of GESAF, along with experts from the National Institute of Health Research and C&R; Research who are conducting cellular, preclinical/clinical research on raloxifene, and experts on supercomputing-based COVID-19 therapeutic development from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information attended the conference.

From Europe, experts from Italy's Dompe Farmaceutici S.p.A., Italy's University Consortium Research Institute (CINECA), and Germany's Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft participating in the European Union's COVID-19 Treatment Discovery Project (Exscalate4CoV) attended.

At the conference, discussions were held on supercomputing-based COVID-19 therapeutic discovery technology being pursued by both countries, as well as on the in vivo efficacy, mechanism of action, and clinical trials of raloxifene. The parties agreed to expand practical cooperation including continuous information exchange on related research, sharing of clinical protocols, and research on mechanisms of action.

A provincial official stated, "The conference primarily focused on exchanging opinions on the current status of raloxifene and supercomputing-based COVID-19 therapeutic development," and added, "As joint research has begun in earnest, we will spare no effort in supporting the early development of COVID-19 treatments including raloxifene through continuous information sharing and cooperation."