Novo Nordisk has forged a deal with Gensaic, agreeing to pay up to $354 million per target to access technology for the tissue-selective delivery of molecules to cardiometabolic targets inside cells.
Gensaic is built on Forge, a platform for mapping the protein interactions that dictate where molecules travel to in the body. The platform, which uses unbiased protein evolution with machine guided design, is intended to advance precision medicine by finding ways to get molecules to specific tissues, including cells outside the liver. Uli Stilz, Head of Novo’s Bio Innovation Hub, discussed the appeal of that prospect.
“Tissue targeting has so much potential—both in terms of the modalities that can be leveraged, but also for the diseases that can be addressed,” Stilz said in a statement. “Gensaic’s technology brings a novel approach, with the ability to screen tissue targeting ligands in an unbiased way. We have the potential to reach challenging targets, while increasing efficacy and reducing potential side effects.”
Novo is paying Gensaic up to $354 million per target in upfront fees and development and commercial milestones, plus tiered royalties, to set up the collaboration. The Danish drugmaker has also agreed to reimburse R&D costs and participate in a Gensaic financing round.
In return, Gensaic will discover new protein ligands. Novo will retain the rights to use the ligands for further development. If the collaboration goes to plan, the partnership could spawn the development and commercialization of multiple programs. Gensaic’s goal is to enable the selective delivery of any therapeutic payload to any tissue of interest.
Novo, a company that made its name in protein therapies, stepped up its interest in intracellular targets in 2021 by acquiring its RNAi partner Dicerna Pharmaceuticals. Marcus Schindler, chief scientific officer at Novo, discussed the company’s need for intracellular technologies at an event last year, explaining that “we do not want to be limited too much when we see novel targets, when we see exciting biology.”
Buying Dicerna gave Novo a way to access intracellular targets. Dicerna initially focused on targets in the liver but was expanding to other organs by the time of the Novo buyout. The Gensaic deal gives Novo a new tool for tissue-selective delivery. Novo heard Gensaic’s pitch during its 2022 Golden Ticket event, when Stilz was among the judges.