Novo Nordisk and Septerna Partner to Develop Oral Small Molecule Therapies for Obesity and Cardiometabolic Diseases
DENVER, Colo., May 14, 2025 (247marketnews.com)- Septerna (NASDAQ:SEPN) and Novo Nordisk entered an exclusive global collaboration and license agreement to discover, develop, and commercialize oral small molecule medicines for obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other cardiometabolic conditions.
The collaboration leverages Novo Nordisk’s expertise in cardiometabolic diseases and Septerna’s GPCR drug discovery platform, with a focus on creating oral therapies targeting GLP-1, GIP, glucagon, and other GPCR receptors
The partnership will launch four development programs targeting G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) proteins, including GLP-1, GIP, and glucagon receptors. Septerna’s proprietary Native Complex Platform™ aims to unlock GPCR therapeutic potential, focusing on oral small molecules for endocrinology, immunology, inflammation, and metabolic diseases.
Under the agreement, Septerna may receive up to $2.2 billion from Novo Nordisk, including over $200 million in upfront and near-term milestone payments, plus tiered royalties on global net sales of marketed products. Novo Nordisk will fund all research and development costs for the partnered programs.
Marcus Schindler, Novo Nordisk’s executive vice president and chief scientific officer of Novo Nordisk, commented, “Novo Nordisk has a rich history of innovation in obesity and diabetes. We are building on our scientific leadership in this space and developing a broad pipeline across various targets and modalities, including peptides and small molecules. Leveraging different modalities creates important optionality in our pipeline in terms of potential targets, dosing regimens and scalability. Septerna has demonstrated strong capabilities in GPCR drug discovery, and we are excited about the opportunity to develop oral small molecule medicines directed at multiple targets.”
The companies will collaborate on research through development candidate selection. Novo Nordisk will then lead global development and commercialization starting at IND-enabling activities. Septerna can opt into a worldwide profit-sharing arrangement for one program, replacing future milestones and royalties for that candidate.
Jeffrey Finer, M.D., Ph.D., Septerna’s CEO and co-founder, added, “Novo Nordisk has a long-standing track record of bringing transformative therapies to market, particularly in the field of metabolic disease, which makes them the ideal partner to advance a suite of programmes targeting critical GPCRs for treating obesity, type 2 diabetes and other related conditions. This collaboration provides a significant opportunity to create multiple potentially groundbreaking oral medicines, while also providing Septerna with the operational flexibility and resources to advance our diverse portfolio of other GPCR-targeted programmes.”
The agreement is subject to standard closing conditions, including clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, with closing expected in Q2 2025.
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