GCCL and GemPharmatech Sign MOU to Deliver Integrated Preclinical-to-Clinical CRO Services Across Korea, U.S., and China

• GCCL, a South Korea-based clinical trial sample analysis specialist and subsidiary of GC Group, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with GemPharmatech, a global preclinical CRO with the world’s largest library of genetically engineered mouse models, to build an integrated drug development service covering the full continuum from preclinical in vivo efficacy testing through clinical trial sample analysis and management.

• The partnership will link GemPharmatech’s preclinical capabilities — spanning in vivo efficacy testing, disease models, and genetically engineered animal models — with GCCL’s central laboratory, bioanalysis, and sample management infrastructure, with joint marketing and client development planned across Korea, the United States, and China.

GCCL, a clinical trial sample analysis specialist and subsidiary of South Korea’s GC Group, and GemPharmatech, a leading global preclinical CRO, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on July 21, 2026, for cooperation in global drug development services. The agreement was announced on July 22, 2026, from Seoul, South Korea, with the signing ceremony attended by GCCL CEO Cho Kwan-koo, GemPharmatech Chairman Dr. Xiang Gao, and GemPharmatech North America President Dr. Brandy Wilkinson.

The partnership is structured around a complementary capability model. GemPharmatech contributes preclinical in vivo efficacy testing alongside an extensive library of disease and genetically engineered animal models — including more than 30,000 strains spanning oncology, immunology, neurodegenerative disease, and beyond. GCCL brings clinical trial central laboratory operations, bioanalysis, and sample management capabilities certified under Good Clinical Laboratory Practice standards by South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The combination is designed to give pharmaceutical and biotechnology sponsors a single, continuous development pathway from early preclinical proof of concept through clinical trial execution — removing the vendor handoff that typically occurs as programs transition from animal model studies to clinical sample analysis.

The two CROs plan to jointly develop and market services combining preclinical research and clinical sample analysis across a range of disease areas and next-generation therapeutic modalities. Joint marketing and client development activities will be coordinated across Korea, the United States, and China — with the U.S. market identified as a core business base, given growing sponsor demand for integrated preclinical-to-clinical service offerings. For global biopharma companies seeking to reduce transition risk and maintain data and operational continuity across development phases, the model is positioned as an end-to-end outsourcing solution that does not require sponsors to re-establish vendor relationships at the preclinical-to-clinical inflection point.

GCCL has been actively building its global CRO partnership network across 2025 and 2026, having previously signed MOU agreements with Frontage Laboratories for the U.S. and APAC markets and with OPIS Research CRO for Europe and Asia at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in January 2026. The GemPharmatech partnership extends this strategy into the preclinical domain, adding upstream service continuity to an existing downstream clinical analytical platform. GemPharmatech, headquartered in Nanjing, China, operates an international CRO network with sites across Asia and North America and was recently expanded through a separate global distribution agreement with Singapore-based Humlab Global to extend its humanized mouse model library across aging, autoimmune, metabolic, oncology, and infectious disease indications.

“We will connect GemPharmatech’s preclinical capabilities with GCCL’s clinical expertise to help our clients smoothly continue development from early research to clinical trials.”

Dr. Xiang Gao, Chairman, GemPharmatech