Novo Nordisk and Ascendis Pharma have agreed to collaborate in developing metabolic and cardiovascular therapies, among them a once-monthly glucagon-like peptide receptor agonist (GLP-1RA).
The collaboration will focus on Novo Nordisk’s obesity and type 2 diabetes products, chief among them a once-monthly GLP-1RA to be developed as the joint venture’s lead candidate. Under the deal’s terms, Novo Nordisk holds exclusive rights to expand resulting metabolic disease products into other therapeutic areas.
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Novo Nordisk is known globally for its GLP-1RA drug semaglutide, marketed as Wegovy for obesity and Ozempic for type 2 diabetes. The drug is predicted to make $42.85bn in sales in 2030, according to GlobalData. Novo Nordisk’s biggest rival is Eli Lilly’s candidate tirzepatide, marketed as Mounjaro for T2D and Zepbound for obesity, which is predicted to bring in $57.65bn in the same year.
A once-monthly drug would be attractive to patients compared to the once-weekly dosing with current alternatives.
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As per the deal signed yesterday (4 November), the two Danish companies will jointly develop therapeutics for metabolic and cardiovascular indications. Ascendis will grant an exclusive, worldwide license for its TransCon technology to Novo Nordisk to develop, manufacture, and commercialise metabolic disease products and product-by-product licenses for those in cardiovascular indications.
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By GlobalDataIn return, Ascendis will be eligible to receive total upfront payments from Novo Nordisk of up to $285m, with up to $77.5m in developmental and regulatory milestone payments for each asset concerned as well as sales-based milestone payments and tiered royalties on net sales. Finalisation of the deal depends on regulatory approvals, which both parties seek to achieve by the end of 2024.
The TransCon platform allows the transient conjugation of an inert carrier to a parent drug for systemic or local release of a therapeutic payload. Ascendis gained US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its TransCon-based hypoparathyroidism drug Yorpvipath (palopegteriparatide) in August 2024. In October, the company submitted a supplemental biologics licence application (sBLA) for TransCon hGH, marketed as Skytrofa, to treat growth hormone deficiency.
Ascendis stock saw a slight uptick following the disclosure of the deal, rising in value by 1.5% as markets opened on 4 November, adding to the company’s market cap of $7.5bn. According to GlobalData, Ascendis is projected to bring in $508m in global revenue in 2024, set to increase to an annual $4.2bn by 2030.
Jan Mikkelesen, Ascendis CEO, said, “The agreement with Novo Nordisk reflects our Vision 2030 to create value in additional large therapeutic areas outside endocrinology rare disease through collaborations with established global leaders.” This deal adds to a collaboration made in 2023 with Teijin Limited, licensing TransCon technology for endocrinological rare diseases, as well as the company’s creation of Eyconis to apply TransCon in ophthalmological indications.
Senior Vice President of global research technologies at Novo Nordisk, Brian Vandahl, emphasised the company’s interest in reducing the frequency of therapy delivery and underscored the potential of using the TransCon platform to achieve this.
