Arch Strengthens its Position as a Leading Kidney Therapeutics Company with the Acquisition of a Breakthrough Platform to Develop New Drugs Targeting Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) has significantly expanded its kidney therapeutics portfolio through the acquisition of Lipdro Therapeutics Inc., gaining a breakthrough pre-clinical platform for developing chronic kidney disease (CKD) treatments. The acquisition, valued at 250,000 common shares at $1.85 per share, includes patents for novel drug compositions targeting interleukin-32 (IL-32), a cytokine implicated in CKD progression.
The platform will be led by Dr. Justin Chun, Lipdro's founder, who joins Arch as Principal Scientist. The acquisition strengthens Arch's position in the $800M+ kidney therapeutics market, targeting a condition affecting over 800 million people globally. The technology represents a significant advancement in 'on-target' CKD treatment, particularly for diabetic kidney disease, which accounts for 30-40% of all CKD cases.
The deal includes newly filed patents protecting compositions and methods, with exclusive licensing from the National Research Council of Canada.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) ha significativamente ampliato il proprio portafoglio di terapie renali tramite l'acquisizione di Lipdro Therapeutics Inc., ottenendo una piattaforma preclinica innovativa per lo sviluppo di trattamenti per la malattia renale cronica (CKD). L'acquisizione, valutata in 250.000 azioni ordinarie a 1,85$ per azione, comprende brevetti relativi a nuove formulazioni di farmaci mirate all'interleuchina-32 (IL-32), una citochina coinvolta nella progressione della CKD.
La piattaforma sarà guidata dal dott. Justin Chun, fondatore di Lipdro, che entra in Arch come Principal Scientist. L'acquisizione rafforza la posizione di Arch nel mercato delle terapie renali, superiore agli 800 milioni di dollari, mirando a una condizione che interessa oltre 800 milioni di persone in tutto il mondo. La tecnologia rappresenta un avanzamento significativo nel trattamento della CKD “on-target”, in particolare per la malattia renale diabetica, che rappresenta il 30-40% di tutti i casi di CKD.
L'accordo prevede brevetti recentemente depositati che proteggono formulazioni e metodi, con licenza esclusiva dal National Research Council of Canada.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) ha ampliado significativamente su cartera de terapias renales mediante la adquisición de Lipdro Therapeutics Inc., obteniendo una plataforma preclínica innovadora para desarrollar tratamientos para la enfermedad renal crónica (CKD). La adquisición, valorada en 250.000 acciones ordinarias a 1,85$ por acción, incluye patentes para nuevas composiciones de fármacos dirigidas a la interleucina-32 (IL-32), una citoquina implicada en la progresión de la CKD.
La plataforma será liderada por el Dr. Justin Chun, fundador de Lipdro, que se une a Arch como Científico Principal. La adquisición fortalece la posición de Arch en el mercado de terapias renales, de más de 800 millones de dólares, apuntando a una condición que afecta a más de 800 millones de personas en todo el mundo. La tecnología representa un avance significativo en el tratamiento “on-target” de la CKD, particularmente para la enfermedad renal diabética, que representa el 30-40% de todos los casos de CKD.
El acuerdo incluye patentes recién presentadas que protegen formulaciones y métodos, con licencia exclusiva del Consejo Nacional de Investigación de Canadá.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF)가 Lipdro Therapeutics Inc.를 인수함으로써 신장 치료 포트폴리오를 크게 확장했습니다. CKD(만성 신장 질환) 치료제를 개발하기 위한 혁신적인 전임상 플랫폼을 얻었습니다. 이 인수의 가치는 주당 1.85달러의 25만 주 보통주로 평가되며, 인터루킨-32(IL-32)를 표적으로 하는 신약 조합물에 대한 특허를 포함합니다. IL-32는 CKD 진행과 관련이 있습니다.
플랫폼은 Lipdro의 창립자인 Dr. Justin Chun가 이끌게 되며 Arch에 Principal Scientist로 합류합니다. 이 인수는 8억 달러가 넘는 신장 치료제 시장에서 Arch의 위치를 강화하고, 전 세계적으로 8억 명이 넘는 사람들에게 영향을 미치는 질환을 대상으로 합니다. 이 기술은 당뇨합병증 신장질환에 특히 중요한 ‘on-target’ CKD 치료의 중요한 발전을 나타내며, 이는 CKD 전체 사례의 30-40%를 차지합니다.
이번 거래에는 새로운 특허가 포함되어 있으며, 캐나다 국립연구위원회로부터의 독점 라이센스가 부여됩니다.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) a largement élargi son portefeuille de thérapies rénales grâce à l'acquisition de Lipdro Therapeutics Inc., obtenant une plateforme préclinique innovante pour développer des traitements pour la maladie rénale chronique (CKD). L'acquisition, évaluée à 250 000 actions ordinaires à 1,85$ l'action, comprend des brevets pour de nouvelles formulations de médicaments ciblant l'interleukine-32 (IL-32), une cytokine impliquée dans la progression de la CKD.
La plateforme sera dirigée par le dott. Justin Chun, fondateur de Lipdro, qui rejoint Arch en tant que Scientist Principal. L'acquisition renforce la position d'Arch sur le marché des thérapies rénales, qui dépasse les 800 M$, visant une condition affectant plus de 800 millions de personnes dans le monde. La technologie représente une avancée majeure dans le traitement CKD « on-target », en particulier pour la néphropathie diabétique, qui représente 30-40 % de tous les cas de CKD.
L'accord comprend des brevets nouvellement déposés protégeant des formulations et des méthodes, avec une licence exclusive du Conseil national de recherches du Canada.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) hat sein Portfolio an Nieren-Therapeutika durch die Übernahme von Lipdro Therapeutics Inc. deutlich erweitert und erhält eine bahnbrechende präklinische Plattform zur Entwicklung von Behandlungen für chronische Nierenerkrankungen (CKD). Die Übernahme, bewertet mit 250.000 Stammaktien zu 1,85$ pro Aktie, umfasst Patente für neue Arzneimittelzusammensetzungen, die auf Interleukin-32 (IL-32) abzielen, eine Zytokin, die mit dem Fortschreiten der CKD in Verbindung steht.
Die Plattform wird von Dr. Justin Chun, dem Gründer von Lipdro, geleitet, der als Principal Scientist zu Arch stößt. Die Übernahme stärkt Archs Position im 800 Mio.$+ Nieren-Therapeutika-Markt, mit Fokus auf eine Erkrankung, die weltweit mehr als 800 Millionen Menschen betrifft. Die Technologie stellt einen bedeutenden Fortschritt in der zielgerichteten CKD-Behandlung dar, insbesondere bei der diabetischen Nephropathie, die 30–40% aller CKD-Fälle ausmacht.
Der Deal umfasst neu eingereichte Patente, die Zusammensetzungen und Methoden schützen, mit exklusiver Lizenz des National Research Council of Canada.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) وسّعت بشكل كبير محفظتها من العلاجات الكلوية من خلال الاستحواذ على شركة Lipdro Therapeutics Inc., لتكسب منصة بروفايل ما قبل السريرية مبتكرة لتطوير علاجات مرض الكلى المزمن CKD. وتُقدر قيمة الاستحواذ بـ 250,000 سهم عادي بسعر 1.85 دولار للسهم، ويشمل براءات اختراع لتكوينات دوائية جديدة تستهدف interleukin-32 (IL-32)، وهو سيتوكين يشارك في تقدم CKD.
ستقود المنصة الدكتور جاستن تشون، مؤسس Lipdro، الذي سينضم إلى Arch كعالم رئيسي. يعزز الاستحواذ مكانة Arch في سوق العلاجات الكلوية الذي يتجاوز قيمته 800 مليون دولار، مستهدفاً حالة تؤثر على أكثر من 800 مليون شخص حول العالم. تمثل التقنية تقدماً كبيراً في علاج CKD المستهدف، وخصوصاً لمرض الكلى السكري، الذي يمثل 30-40% من جميع حالات CKD.
تتضمن الصفقة براءات اختراع جديدة تتعلق بالتركيبات والطرق، مع ترخيص حصري من المجلس الوطني للبحوث الكندي.
Arch Biopartners (OTCQB: ACHFF) 通过收购 Lipdro Therapeutics Inc. 大幅扩展了其肾脏治疗产品组合，获得用于开发慢性肾病 CKD治疗的突破性临床前平台。此次收购估值为250,000股普通股，股价1.85美元/股，包含针对白细胞介素-32 (IL-32) 的新药组合物专利，这种细胞因子与 CKD 的进展有关。
该平台将由 Lipdro 的创始人 Dr. Justin Chun 领导，并以首席科学家身份加入 Arch。此次收购增强了 Arch 在价值超过8亿美元的肾脏治疗市场中的地位，面向全球超过8亿人受影响的疾病。该技术在“靶向”CKD治疗方面具有重要进展，尤其是糖尿病肾病，约占 CKD 总病例的30-40%。
交易包括新提交的专利，保护药物组合物和方法，并获得加拿大国家研究委员会的独家授权许可。
- None.
- Platform still in pre-clinical stage, requiring significant development time
- Share dilution from 250,000 new common shares issued
- Future royalty payments required on net sales
- Arch acquires a new CKD platform that has the potential to produce next-generation CKD drugs for the pharmaceutical industry
- Based on a novel mechanism of action involving IL-32 and directly implicated in CKD, discovered in pre-clinical studies led by Dr. Justin Chun
- The Company has filed both composition and method of use patents relating to the CKD platform.
- The Arch CKD program will be led by Dr. Justin Chun, who joins the Company as a Principal Scientist
- CKD is largely an unmet medical need, currently affecting more than 800 million people worldwide and approximately 35 to 38 million in the U.S.
TORONTO, Sept. 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Arch Biopartners Inc., (“Arch” or the “Company”) (TSX Venture: ARCH and OTCQB: ACHFF), today announced it has acquired a pre-clinical platform developing new drugs to treat chronic kidney disease (CKD). The platform includes recently filed patents protecting new compositions and methods targeting a novel mechanism of action involving interleukin-32 (IL-32), which is directly implicated in the progression of CKD.
Farris Smith, Strategic Advisor to Arch and former CFO of Novo Nordisk Canada, said, “This new chronic kidney disease program expands the commercial potential of Arch’s kidney drug development pipeline. The assets underlying the CKD program could provide novel, on-target treatment options for a significant unmet need in a major pharmaceutical market. Combined with Arch’s existing acute kidney injury programs, Arch is better positioned for potential new partnership opportunities that can accelerate development and drive long-term value for the Company.”
Richard Muruve, CEO of Arch Biopartners, said, “Our entry into the CKD drug development business is a natural evolution for our team that has a strong core competency in nephrology. Today’s news makes Arch Biopartners’ kidney drug portfolio more vital to patients and more valuable to the pharmaceutical industry.”
Arch obtained the new CKD assets through the acquisition of all outstanding shares of Lipdro Therapeutics Inc. (Lipdro), a private Alberta based company and arm’s length to the Company, in return for 250,000 common shares of Arch at a deemed price of
The therapeutic platform acquired by Arch specifically targets interleukin-32 (IL-32), a non-classical cytokine involved in regulating inflammation and immune responses. In pre-clinical studies, Dr. Chun and his scientific team discovered that IL-32 is directly implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetic CKD. New drug compositions were subsequently invented through a collaboration involving the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), Lipdro, and Arch scientists, and exclusively licensed to Arch by the NRC. Additional therapeutic approaches involving IL-32 were developed and patented by Dr. Chun and Arch scientists and assigned to Arch.
Dr. Daniel Muruve, Chief Science Officer at Arch Biopartners and Professor, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, said, “We are excited to welcome Dr. Chun to the Arch science team as a Principal Scientist and leader of the IL-32 CKD program. His deep scientific knowledge as a nephrologist and his leading expertise in working with patient-derived kidney organoids will be invaluable as Arch develops novel therapeutics targeting chronic kidney disease.”
These patents are a significant addition to Arch’s kidney drug asset portfolio. The IL-32 CKD program deepens the Company’s portfolio for developing new treatments for kidney diseases and injury. The new program introduces a novel therapeutic approach for diabetic CKD, the most common cause of kidney failure globally. The therapeutic platform is based on a mechanistic understanding of disease pathways and builds on Arch’s expertise in renal inflammation and organ protection.
Dr. Chun said, “Targeting the underlying mechanisms of inflammation and fibrosis that drive CKD is critical for preventing irreversible structural organ damage and slowing the progression toward kidney failure. In this context, our discovery of IL-32 as an intracellular, unconventional cytokine that links metabolic dysregulation to chronic inflammation represents a promising therapeutic target and opens new avenues for halting the progression of CKD, including diabetic kidney disease.”
An overview of the IL-32 mechanism of action related to diabetic-CKD is summarized by Dr. Chun and his collaborators in the following abstract published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology: “IL-32 Is a Lipid Droplet-Associated Mediator of Tubular Injury in Diabetic Kidney Disease”
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
CKD affects more than 800 million people worldwide1,2 and approximately 35 to 38 million in the U.S.3. Diabetes is the leading cause, responsible for an estimated
Arch’s newly acquired ‘on-target’ CKD platform stands apart from many drugs in use today and may represent the next generation of CKD candidates for clinical development in the pharmaceutical industry.
About Dr. Justin Chun
Dr. Chun, MD, PhD is an Associate Professor and Clinician Scientist at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, and Assistant Director of the Precision Medicine in Nephrology Program at the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases. He also co-directs the Human Organoid Innovation Hub, where his research focuses on using patient-derived kidney organoids and primary kidney cells to study glomerular diseases and diabetic kidney disease.
About Arch Biopartners
Arch Biopartners Inc. is a therapeutic biotech company developing novel drugs for acute and chronic kidney diseases. The Company is advancing an integrated pipeline that includes new treatments targeting inflammation- and toxin-induced kidney injury.
The company’s programs include a pre-clinical chronic kidney disease platform targeting IL-32 (announced today), LSALT peptide, a first-in-class DPEP1 inhibitor in Phase II for preventing cardiac surgery-associated acute kidney injury, and cilastatin, a repurposed drug in Phase II for preventing toxin-induced kidney damage.
These assets represent distinct, mechanism-based approaches to treating and preventing common causes of kidney damage. Together, they target serious unmet needs in kidney care across both chronic and acute indications, affecting millions of patients worldwide.
For more details about the Company’s science and ongoing clinical trials, please visit: www.archbiopartners.com/our-science
Follow Arch on LinkedIn, Bluesky, and X (formerly Twitter) for news as it happens.
The Company has 66,106,366 common shares outstanding.
For more information, please contact:
Aaron Benson
Director of Communications
Arch Biopartners, Inc.
647-428-7031
Send a message and subscribe for email alerts at: www.archbiopartners.com/contact-us
Citations:
- Kovesdy CP. Epidemiology of chronic kidney disease: an update 2022. Kidney Int Suppl (2011). 2022 Apr;12(1):7-11. doi: 10.1016/j.kisu.2021.11.003. Epub 2022 Mar 18. PMID: 35529086; PMCID: PMC9073222
- Francis, A., Harhay, M.N., Ong, A.C.M. et al. Chronic kidney disease and the global public health agenda: an international consensus. Nat Rev Nephrol 20, 473–485 (2024). doi: 10.1038/s41581-024-00820-6
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Chronic Kidney Disease in the United States, 2023. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2023
- Ma X, Liu R, Xi X, Zhuo H, Gu Y. Global burden of chronic kidney disease due to diabetes mellitus, 1990–2021, and projections to 2050. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2025;16 doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1513008
- Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) Diabetes Work Group. KDIGO 2022 Clinical Practice Guideline for Diabetes Management in Chronic Kidney Disease. Kidney Int 102(5S):S1-S127. doi: 10.1016/j.kint.2022.06.008. PMID: 36272764
- Francis, A., Harhay, M.N., Ong, A.C.M. et al. Chronic kidney disease and the global public health agenda: an international consensus. Nat Rev Nephrol 20, 473–485 (2024). doi: 10.1038/s41581-024-00820-6
- Zoccali C, Vanholder R, Massy Z. et al. The systemic nature of CKD. Nat Rev Nephrol 13, 344–358 (2017). doi: 10.1038/nrneph.2017.52.
- Baigent, ColinAnker, Stefan D. et al. Impact of diabetes on the effects of sodium–glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors on kidney outcomes: collaborative meta-analysis of large placebo-controlled trials. The Lancet. 2022;400(10365):1788–1801. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02074-8.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws regarding expectations of the Company’s future performance, liquidity, and capital resources, as well as the ongoing development of its drug candidates targeting chronic kidney disease and the dipeptidase-1 (DPEP-1) pathway, including the outcome of its clinical trials relating to LSALT peptide (Metablok) or cilastatin, the successful commercialization and marketing of its drug candidates, whether the Company will receive, and the timing and costs of obtaining, regulatory approvals in Canada, the United States, Europe, and other countries, its ability to raise capital to fund its business plans, the efficacy of its drug candidates compared to the drug candidates developed by competitors, its ability to retain and attract key management personnel, and the breadth of, and its ability to protect, its intellectual property portfolio. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs, including certain factors and assumptions, as described in the Company’s most recent annual audited financial statements and related management discussion and analysis under the heading “Business Risks and Uncertainties”. As a result of these risks and uncertainties, or other unknown risks and uncertainties, the actual results may differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. The words “believe”, “may”, “plan”, “will”, “estimate”, “continue”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “expect”, and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Additional information relating to Arch Biopartners Inc., including the Company’s most recent annual audited financial statements, is available by accessing the Canadian Securities Administrators’ System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (“SEDAR”) website at www.sedarplus.ca.
The scientific and medical content of this release has been approved by the Company’s Chief Science Officer
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FAQ
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