Novo Nordisk, maker of the hit drug 'Wegovy', prepares next new drug development

Novonordisk Partnering Day Held
"New Drug Development Focused on Incretin... No Innovation"
"Need to Suppress Muscle Loss... Interest in Gene Therapy"
Hanmi and Yuhan Launch New Therapeutic Development in Korea

Rapidly growing Novo Nordisk, driven by the diabetes treatment Ozempic and the obesity treatment Wegovy, announced plans to expedite the preparation of follow-up new drugs.

Thomas Land, Senior Scientist of Business Development at Novo Nordisk, is presenting at the 'Novo Nordisk Partnering Day Korea 2024' held on the 4th in Seocho-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Lee Chunhee]

On the 4th, Thomas Land, Senior Scientist of Business Development at Novo Nordisk, emphasized the need for "healthier weight loss" at the 'Novo Nordisk Partnering Day Korea 2024' held under the theme of "Innovation to Redefine the Treatment and Management of Cardiometabolic Diseases." He stressed, "Various methods are necessary to curb the increasing obesity."

Regarding current obesity drug research and development (R&D), Senior Scientist Land criticized the lack of innovation. He explained, "A considerable number of pipelines have emerged, with about 156 currently under study. While the number itself is encouraging, a closer look reveals that most target the 'incretin' family."

Incretins are hormones secreted by the intestines. The mechanism of action of GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1), which leads the current obesity treatment market with drugs like Wegovy, is also a type of incretin. After being secreted from the intestines, GLP-1 responds to various tissues in the body, influencing glucose and insulin synthesis as well as cell apoptosis. He stated, "It's not that having many incretins is bad," but emphasized, "Since there are various mechanisms beyond incretins, it is necessary to also explore other targets."

Novo Nordisk's GLP-1 class treatment 'Wegovy (active ingredient Semaglutide)'
[Photo by Novo Nordisk]

One of the main factors determining the future direction of obesity treatments is "muscle loss." Senior Scientist Land highlighted, "Research on healthy weight loss is needed," and stressed, "We need to approach combination therapies that either minimize muscle loss or increase muscle mass while reducing weight." He pointed to gene therapy as a modality of interest moving forward. He said, "If we can induce gene expression and drug action related to obesity, it would be fascinating," adding, "It is not impossible."

The event was organized to prepare for such next steps. Novo Nordisk and its holding company Novo Holdings co-hosted the event with the Korea Health Industry Development Institute to seek new growth engines through open innovation. Prior to the main event, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Novo Nordisk and the Health Industry Development Institute to expand mutual cooperation on global open innovation.

Thomas Land, Senior Scientist at Novo Nordisk Business Development, Inyoung Choi, Head of R&D Center at Hanmi Pharmaceutical, Youngmi Lee, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Yuhan Corporation, and Juntae Park, Senior Consultant at Korea Health Industry Development Institute (from left), are engaged in a discussion at the 'Novo Nordisk Partnering Day Korea 2024' held on the 4th in Seocho-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Chunhee Lee]

In the subsequent discussion, domestic pharmaceutical companies currently developing obesity treatments, Hanmi Pharmaceutical and Yuhan Corporation, introduced their pipelines and future development directions.

Choi In-young, Head of R&D Center at Hanmi Pharmaceutical, which is conducting Phase 3 clinical trials of the GLP-1-based obesity treatment Epeglenatide, echoed Senior Scientist Land’s remarks. Choi said, "The quality of weight loss is important," adding, "Although muscle loss inevitably accompanies weight loss, we are conducting research with the perspective of minimizing this or increasing muscle mass in new ways to improve the quality of weight loss."

Yuhan Corporation is developing a GLP-1-based obesity treatment injection that only needs to be administered once a month through collaboration with Inventi Labs. Current obesity treatment injections require daily or weekly administration, causing significant inconvenience to patients, and Yuhan is working to improve this. Lee Young-mi, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Yuhan Corporation, also emphasized, "The most important thing is treatment that suits the patient," and added, "Treating obesity is ultimately about living happily and healthily, so if this can also help treat other diseases, it would be a much better treatment."