Aspect Biosystems and Novo Nordisk enter partnership to develop diabetes medicines

Novo Nordisk and Aspect Biosystems have recently announced that they are entering a new phase of their partnership to develop advanced cellular medicines for diabetes. Since 2023, Aspect and Novo Nordisk have collaborated to develop cellular medicines designed to replace, repair or supplement biological functions to deliver truly disease-modifying therapies. Therefore this new phase of the partnership builds on the momentum achieved in the existing collaboration. It reflects a shared mission to accelerate the development of potentially curative medicines for serious diseases.

Note that Aspect has acquired rights to stem cell-derived islet cell and hypoimmune cell engineering technologies from Novo Nordisk and will lead development, manufacturing and commercialisation. Novo Nordisk will have defined rights to expand its role in later-stage development and commercialisation.

In addition Novo Nordisk will make an additional equity investment in Aspect and provide research funding to advance these potentially curative therapies. Novo Nordisk will be eligible to receive royalties and milestone payments on future product sales from Aspect.

“Novo Nordisk was founded on a commitment to improve the lives of people living with diabetes. That commitment is as strong now as it was 100 years ago, and we have a continued focus on bringing innovation to people living with type 1 diabetes through internal and external innovation efforts,” said Jacob Sten Petersen, senior vice president, Global Research, Novo Nordisk. “Aspect brings tremendous expertise and capabilities in cellular medicines, and we are proud of our partnership with them to progress transformative cell therapies toward clinical development and potentially generating a functional cure for people living with diabetes.”

The agreement involves integrating select Novo Nordisk cell therapy research, development, and manufacturing capabilities and expertise from the United States and Denmark into Aspect’s Canada-anchored platform.

“Our partnership with Novo Nordisk combines more than a century of their global leadership in the fight against diabetes with Aspect’s leadership in cell therapy and our biotech speed and agility, creating a powerful force multiplier to deliver clinical impact,” said Tamer Mohamed, founder and CEO, Aspect Biosystems. “By integrating key technologies and capabilities, we are strengthening our full-stack platform, accelerating our path to curative cell therapies, and advancing our vision to build a generational biotechnology company that delivers global impact for people living with serious diseases.”

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Related Topics and Keywords

Aspect Biosystems, curative medicines for diabetes, Diabetes, Novo Nordisk