On September 4, 2021, ZHONGZE signed an agreement with GBC of the United States to license in a clinical Phase II anti-addiction program ZZ2101 for development and commercialization in Greater China including Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.
The successful signing of this collaboration can further enrich the pipeline of ZHONGZE. In the near future, ZHONGZE will select appropriate clinical trial sites and service providers to apply for an IND in China and carry out clinical development, production and commercialization of ZZ2101. With the formal integration of ZZ2101 into ZHONGZE's pipeline, ZHONGZE becomes an innovative drug R&D enterprise with a pipeline covering preclinical, clinical Phase I and phase II studies.
At present, there are few drugs available in smoking and drug abstinence. In addition to nicotine patches, only Varenicline and Bupropion are available in China, which still has huge unmet clinical needs. ZZ2101 has a unique mechanism of action and is in a leading position globally for novel therapies for substance use disorder. Currently, the program has completed a Phase IIa clinical trial in the United States. Previous research data show that the drug has excellent safety and efficacy profiles and is expected to become a new star for addiction treatment.