제주약학연구소 개소 및 심포지엄 개최

Inaugural symposium of pharmaceutical research institute held

Research capabilities to be strengthened through MOU signed with 10 institutes

Jeju National University opened the Jeju Pharmaceutical Research Institute on Thursday (Dec. 9) at the College of Pharmacy.

The institute was established to strengthen the research capabilities of the College of Pharmacy and discover and support young researchers in the studies of pharmacy.

The newly opened research institute will attract state-led pharmaceutical and bio technological research and development projects. Interdisciplinary and industry-academic collaboration will also be pursued to develop new pharmaceuticals. Additionally, the institute will launch research projects on medicinal services and health care policies through cooperation with regional hospitals and pharmacies in Jeju.

The research institute is led by the faculty of the university’s College of Pharmacy, and consists of five research departments specializing in material development, basic pharmacy, pharmaceutical development, efficacy and toxicity, and clinical and social pharmacology.

Based on the diversity of its research areas, the institute will actively cooperate with other research institutes and companies in Jeju and other regions on the Korean mainland. On the opening of the institute, a memorandum of understanding on exchanges was signed with BMI Korea, KITECH, KETI, Daewoong Therapeutics, Affyxell Therapeutics, Ohsongpharm, QuBEST BIO, HiSense BIO, Perp, and Jeju Institute of Korean Medicine.

Marking the inauguration and signboard hanging of the institute, the first symposium was held in Ara Convention Hall, Jeju National University.

The symposium included two sessions. In Session 1, Lim Dong-soon (professor, Kyung Hee University), Joo Kyeong-min (professor, Sungkyunkwan University), and Na Dong-hee (professor, Chung-Ang University) gave presentations to update the participants on the latest research outcomes in pharmacology. Session 2 featured Park Chu-cheol (CEO, HiSense BIO), Kim Ki-nam (director, Affyxel Therapeutics), Lee Na-hyeon (CEO, E-Blue), and Kim Su-heon, (CEO, QuBEST BIO) shared their ideas for industrial-academic cooperation.

The presentations were followed by the discussions on the measures for the development of Jeju’s pharmaceutical and bio technological industries, and of the Jeju Pharmaceutical Research Institute.

Jeong Eui-man, director of the institute, said during the symposium that efforts will be made to invigorate research on the use of local natural substances through industrial-academic and intra-campus cooperation so that the research outcomes can contribute to the advancement of local industries. In this sense, the institute’s first symposium was a forum for the discussions on the direction of the institutional development and the creation of potential for collaborative research projects, he added.