Orion to enter dental disease treatment sector

Orion Corp., the Korean company, best known for its signature product choco pie, is entering drug development. Instead of indirectly running a joint venture for this purpose like in the past, the company will form an affiliate to directly run the business starting with treatment of dental disease.

ORION Holdings on Tuesday said it signed a contract at its headquarters in Seoul with the dental treatment developer HisensBio to form a joint venture, with the latter owning 40% and Orion Holdings 60%. Tentatively named Orion Biologics, the venture will be launched next month with up to 16.5 billion won ($12 million) in paid-in capital depending on its progress.

In 2016, Orion announced a business structure shift away centered on confectionery to one featuring the three simpler units of bio, beverages and convenient meal replacement, as well as boosting related operations. In 2020, the company formed a bio joint venture, Shandong Lukang Haoliyou, with China's public pharmaceutical company Shandong Lukang Pharmaceutical and is promoting promising Korean bio technologies for commercial use on the Chinese market.

Last year, Orion introduced in China technology for early detection of colorectal cancer developed by the Korean company Genomictree. In February this year, Orion concluded a contract on joint development of a tuberculosis vaccine with global vaccine specialist Curatis to expand the vaccine pipeline in China.

HisensBio has patented technology that treats the symptoms of tooth sensitivity. In a world first in 2017, the company developed copine-7 protein-derived peptide, the foundation of original technology for regeneration of dentin and periodontal tissue, and promotes the commercialization of tooth sensitivity treatment using this breakthrough.

Treatment of tooth sensitivity now involves physical approaches like covering the tooth with resin, but HisensBio's technology can regenerate damaged dentin to protect dental nerves and block external stimuli at the source.

An Orion source said, “Peptide is harmless to the human body as a bodily component, so we expect the possibility of early commercial application," adding, "We've verified its safety in domestic Phase 1 clinical trials and are conducting Phase 2 trials.

Through the joint venture, Orion Holdings will introduce specific treatment technology owned by HisensBio for dental diseases such as tooth sensitivity and decay and periodontal ailments and pursue product development and clinical approval for commercialization on Asian markets.

The company will also enter the markets for quasi-drugs such as mouthwash and toothpaste as well as food materials.

Write to Kyeong-je Han at hankyung@hankyung.com