CureCell

What CureCell does

CureCell is a privately held Japanese pharmaceutical venture founded on August 1, 2022, and certified by Jichi Medical University (自治医科大学認定ベンチャー), headquartered in Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo. The company develops apomorphine derivatives as preventive and therapeutic agents targeting ferroptosis — iron-dependent peroxide-induced cell death implicated in over 100 diseases including NASH, myocardial infarction, stroke, mitochondrial diseases (MELAS, Leber disease), Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Huntington's disease, and ALS. Its intellectual property centers on Japan Patent No. 7360229 covering ferroptosis inhibitors without disease restrictions, with 10+ pipeline candidate compounds and an international PCT application (PCT/JP2022/042198). The company is also advancing a separate dermal delivery platform called DDPD (Dr.Curecell Dermal Penetration Depot), patent-pending in Japan, for anti-aging cosmetic ingredient applications.

The company operated a dual business model until January 20, 2025, when it executed a corporate split (会社分割) under Article 803 of Japan's Companies Act, transferring non-pharmaceutical operations — including the Dr.CureCell NMN15000 (¥15,120) and B-CureCell B-COMPLEX PRO (¥5,940) anti-aging supplement lines — to a newly established wholly-owned subsidiary, Dr. CureCell Co., Ltd. (株式会社ドクターキュアセル). CureCell Inc. retains the pharmaceutical drug discovery business. Pre-split, supplements were sold directly to consumers via e-commerce (ansene-online.com) and B2B wholesale to medical institutions and clinics in the Tokyo metropolitan area, with no disclosed export or international distribution. Revenue from pharmaceutical development has not been realized; the company is positioned as a clinical-trial-stage research entity, with manufacturing conducted under GMP-certified domestic facilities for its supplement line.

The company is founder-controlled, with Representative Director and CEO Maiko Nakao (中尾麻衣子) holding approximately 71.38% of equity as of October 2025, alongside Director Hashimoto Seiichi (橋本誠一) and one additional shareholder. In September-November 2025, CureCell raised 30.6 million yen through equity crowdfunding on the E-Crowd platform partnered with Daiwa Securities Group, at a pre-money valuation of 950 million yen. Most significantly, in March 2026, CureCell was accepted into AMED's (Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development) Intractable Diseases Practical Research Project for fiscal years 2026-2028, securing up to 180 million yen in research funding over three years for clinical trial preparation of apomorphine ethylmorphine hydrochloride for mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, under research representative Dr. Jin Kosaka of Jichi Medical University.

Name

CureCell

Legal name

株式会社キュアセル

Website

https://curecell-lab.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Short description

CureCell is a Tokyo-based Jichi Medical University venture developing apomorphine-derivative ferroptosis inhibitors as therapeutics for over 100 oxidative-stress-related diseases, while operating consumer anti-aging supplements through a spun-off subsidiary.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pharmaceutical drug discovery

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

Drug Discovery (Target ID/Validation & Hit Discovery) (HLAIALAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Healthy Aging & Cognitive Support Supplements (CRADAGAM)

Keywords

• Ferroptosis inhibitors
• Anti-aging supplements
• Drug discovery
• NMN supplements
• Mitochondrial disease therapy

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Pharmaceutical Development (Drug Development): Development of apomorphine derivatives as preventive and therapeutic drugs for ferroptosis-related diseases including NASH, myocardial infarction, stroke, Leigh syndrome, mitochondrial diseases, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Huntington's, ALS, and other conditions. Revenue not yet realized as company is in research/clinical trial preparation stage.
2. Anti-Aging Supplements: Development, manufacturing, and sales of anti-aging supplements including NMN15000 and B-COMPLEX PRO vitamins. Products sold directly to consumers via e-commerce and to medical institutions through wholesale channels.
3. Anti-Aging Cosmetics: Development, manufacturing, and sales of anti-aging cosmetic ingredients and products using DDPD technology. B2B sales to cosmetic manufacturers, trading companies, and distributors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CureCell develops novel apomorphine derivatives as ferroptosis inhibitors for preventive and therapeutic medicines targeting over 100 diseases caused by oxidative stress, including NASH, myocardial infarction, stroke, mitochondrial diseases, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's disease. Following a January 2025 corporate split, the pharmaceutical drug discovery business remains in CureCell while anti-aging supplements (NMN15000, B-COMPLEX PRO) and DDPD-based cosmetic ingredients were transferred to the wholly-owned subsidiary Dr. CureCell Co., Ltd.

Product overview

CureCell operates two business segments: pharmaceutical drug discovery (創薬事業) and non-pharmaceutical anti-aging products (非医薬品事業). The pharmaceutical segment develops apomorphine derivatives as ferroptosis inhibitors for over 100 related diseases including NASH, myocardial infarction, stroke, mitochondrial diseases, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's disease. The non-pharmaceutical segment consists of consumer supplements including Dr.CureCell NMN15000 (high-purity NMN anti-aging supplement at ¥15,120) and Dr.CureCell B-COMPLEX PRO (vitamin B group multi-supplement at ¥5,940), both manufactured in GMP-certified facilities. Additionally, the company applies its DDPD (Dermal Penetration Depot) technology to develop anti-aging cosmetic ingredients and products for the beauty market. As of January 2025, the non-pharmaceutical business was spun off into a separate entity,株式会社ドクターキュアセル (Dr.CureCell Co., Ltd.), while CureCell Inc. retained the pharmaceutical drug discovery operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Dr.CureCell NMN15000: Anti-aging NMN supplement with 99.9%+ purity NMN原材料, manufactured in GMP-certified domestic factory, verified for stability and safety in clinical settings at Jichi Medical University
• Dr.CureCell B-COMPLEX PRO
• DDPD技術 (Dr. CureCell Dermal Penetration Depot)

Products and services

• Dr.CureCell NMN15000 High-purity anti-aging NMN supplement (99.9%+ purity verified by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare registered testing institution) manufactured in domestic GMP-certified facilities. Contains 15,000mg NMN per bottle, supports NAD+ production and sirtuin gene activation for energy and longevity, priced at ¥15,120 (tax included), 30-45 day supply per bottle; sold direct-to-consumer via ansene-online.com and wholesale to medical institutions.
• Dr.CureCell B-COMPLEX PRO Nutritional functional food containing vitamin B1 100mg, B2 100mg, B6 180mg, B12 300μg, pantothenic acid 120mg, folic acid 1,000μg, L-carnitine tartrate 180mg, nucleic acids 50mg, plus biotin 400μg per 4-tablet daily serving (120 capsules, 30-day supply). Marketed for energy metabolism support, priced at ¥5,940 (tax included).
• Apomorphine Derivatives (Ferroptosis Inhibitor Drug Pipeline) CureCell's core pharmaceutical R&D asset: a portfolio of 10+ novel apomorphine derivative compounds with stronger ferroptosis inhibitory activity and Nrf2 activation than standard apomorphine, being developed as preventive and therapeutic drugs for over 100 indications including NASH, myocardial infarction, stroke, Leigh syndrome, MELAS/Leber, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Huntington's, and ALS. The platform is protected by Japan Patent No. 7360229 (no disease restrictions) and is the lead candidate pursued under AMED grant for mitochondrial myopathy clinical trial preparation.
• DDPD-based Anti-Aging Cosmetic Ingredients Anti-aging cosmetic ingredients and products developed using CureCell's proprietary DDPD (Dr.Curecell Dermal Penetration Depot) skin permeation and sustained-release technology. Sold B2B to cosmetic manufacturers, trading companies, and distributors for product formulation.

Quantifiable outcome

• NMN purity of 99.9%+ verified by Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare registered testing institution
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and core.

• Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 March 2026CureCell was accepted into AMED's 2026-2028 Intractable Diseases Practical Research Project as a cooperating company. Research课题: 'Clinical trial preparation for apoethylmorphine hydrochloride for mitochondrial myopathy.' Research funding of 60 million yen per year (up to 180 million yen total). Research representative: Dr. Jin Kosaka (Jichi Medical University).
• Otsuka Pharmaceutical (大塚製薬)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 2 March 2025CureCell's CEO Maiko Nakao was invited to speak at an Otsuka Pharmaceutical hosted public lecture conference on 'Women's Health and Workstyle - For a Society Where Everyone Can Be Healthy.' The conference was co-hosted with Tokyo Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology and supported by various medical associations.
• Dr. Cure Cell (株式会社ドクターキュアセル)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 January 2025CureCell completed a corporate split (会社分割) on January 20, 2025, transferring non-pharmaceutical business (anti-aging supplements and cosmetics) to the newly established Dr. Cure Cell. CureCell retains pharmaceutical development (drug discovery) business. All existing contracts with customers and partners were succeeded per Company Law Article 803.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Stealth BioTherapeutics: Clinical-stage biotech developing elamipretide and related mitochondrial-targeted therapies for mitochondrial diseases including mitochondrial myopathy. Closely comparable to CureCell's AMED-supported clinical trial preparation for apomorphine ethylmorphine hydrochloride in mitochondrial encephalomyopathy.
• ChromaDex: US-based life sciences company focused on NAD+ precursor ingredients including NMN and Niagen, supplying supplement brands and conducting clinical research. Direct peer for CureCell's supplement subsidiary Dr. CureCell, given overlapping NMN product positioning and anti-aging/NAD+ mechanism story.
• Sosei Group (Sosei Heptares): Japanese-listed GPCR-focused drug discovery and development company spun out of academic research, with a platform-based approach to generating multiple pipeline assets. Direct peer given shared Japan domicile, academic-venture origin, and platform-driven small-molecule pipeline model.
• PeptiDream: Tokyo-based drug discovery platform company that uses a constrained peptide discovery platform to generate therapeutic candidates. Comparable to CureCell as a Japan-headquartered, university-spinout-style drug discovery company with broad platform IP and pharma partnership business model.
• Elysium Health: US-based consumer health company selling NAD+ precursor and sirtuin-activating supplements (Basis, Signal), grounded in academic longevity research. Direct peer to Dr. CureCell's NMN supplement line and thematically aligned with CureCell's broader anti-aging/longevity positioning.

Emerging players

• Metro International Biotech: Clinical-stage biotech developing MIB-626, an NAD+ precursor in human trials for aging-related conditions. Comparable emerging player at the intersection of NAD+ biology and aging therapeutics, relevant to both CureCell's supplement business and the underlying mechanistic story.
• AnGes: Tokyo-based clinical-stage biotech developing gene and nucleic-acid based medicines, originating from Osaka University. Comparable as a Japanese academic-venture biotech at early-to-mid clinical stage, with similar fundraising profile and reliance on Japanese grant/regulatory pathways.

Broad incumbents

• Takeda Pharmaceutical: Largest Japanese pharmaceutical company, with global rare disease and neuroscience franchises. Relevant as a potential acquirer/licensing partner for CureCell's mitochondrial disease program and as a benchmark for what a scaled Japanese drug discovery operation looks like.
• Astellas Pharma: Major Japanese pharmaceutical company with established neurology, mitochondrial disease, and rare disease programs. Comparable as a potential partner/acquirer and as a Japanese pharma benchmark operating in overlapping therapeutic areas including neurodegeneration.
• Daiichi Sankyo: Major Japanese pharmaceutical company with broad R&D pipeline including ADC platform and rare disease interests. Relevant as a potential out-licensing/partnering counterparty for CureCell's broad ferroptosis inhibitor platform and as a Japanese pharma scale benchmark.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks2 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/maiko_hashimoto

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CureCell