Zhongze Therapeutics

Zhongze Therapeutics, established in 2017, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Shanghai, China, with additional offices in Victoria, Australia. The firm concentrates on the discovery, development, and commercialization of treatments for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, with a particular emphasis on psychiatric and neurological conditions. The company's operations are supported by a venture capital-backed financing model, highlighted by a significant $10 million Pre-A funding round in September 2021 led by Cenova Capital. This capital infusion is earmarked for advancing its product pipeline.

The company's core research and development team possesses a collective experience of over 100 years in the field of CNS drug development. This team's expertise is foundational to the company's strategy, which integrates both internal R&D efforts and in-licensing of external assets to build a product portfolio for both domestic and global markets. A key figure associated with the company is Co-Founder and CEO, Xianbo Zhou, M.D., Ph.D. The company's approach combines target- and phenotypic-based drug discovery with precision neurology to develop therapies.

Zhongze's pipeline addresses conditions such as schizophrenia, substance addiction, and neurodegenerative diseases. Its most advanced compound is ZZ6398, a potential first-in-class treatment for schizophrenia that targets positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive impairment. ZZ6398 has received Investigational New Drug (IND) approvals in both China and the United States for schizophrenia and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Preclinical and clinical studies have indicated favorable efficacy, safety, and tolerability for the compound. The first-in-human dose escalation study for ZZ6398 was successfully completed in early 2022. Other assets in its pipeline include a phase II combination drug for substance use disorders and a phase I gut-restricted small peptide targeting the gut-brain axis.

Keywords: clinical-stage biotech, central nervous system disorders, CNS drug development, psychiatric therapies, neurological treatments, schizophrenia, neurodegenerative diseases, substance addiction, ZZ6398, IND approval, precision neurology, venture capital-backed, Cenova Capital, Xianbo Zhou, drug discovery, biopharmaceutical, Shanghai biotech