News

JIC Venture Growth Investments (VGI) has acquired the shares in J-Pharma Co., Ltd., (J-Pharma), a company developing anti-cancer drugs targeting amino acid transporter LAT1(L-type amino acid transporter 1), through its JIC Venture Growth Fund 1 (VGF1).

J-Pharma was founded in 2005 by Hitoshi Endo, an emeritus professor at Kyorin University, and has been developing drugs targeting various transporters. In recent years, J-Pharma has focused on the development of LAT1 inhibitor, and clinical trial of JPH203, an inhibitor for biliary tract cancer, and OKY-034, an inhibitor for pancreatic cancer, is under way.

VGI hopes that new treatment options for patients suffering from intractable diseases, which have few treatments, such as biliary tract cancer and pancreatic cancer will be provided,through this investment in J-Pharma. Since the discovery of the LAT1 transporter by Dr. Endo and Dr. Yoshikatsu Kanai, professor of Osaka University Graduate school of Medicine, J-Pharma has been developing drugs targeting the LAT1 transporter for many years with the support of the public and private sectors. VGI also hopes that the successful development of these drugs will set a good precedent for the technological seeds born in Japan to be put to practical use by venture companies.

^{The information contained in this notice is current at the time of publication and subject to change without notice.}