CLAYTON – Novo Nordisk, which operates a huge and growing manufacturing facility in Johnston County, is expanding its capabilities for treatment of diabetes with the acquisition of a U.K. startup and much of its technology in a deal that could be worth as much as $800 million.
The Denmark-based insulin manufacturer has acquired Ziylom a company born at the University of Bristol in the U.K.
Key to the deal is Ziylo’s development of glucose-responsive insulin.
This technology “might help eliminate the risks of low blood sugar, which is one of the primary risks associated with insulin treatment in diabetics,” reported life science news site BioSpace.
“We believe the glucose binding molecules discovered by the Ziylo team together with Novo Nordisk world-class insulin capabilities have the potential to lead to the development of glucose responsive insulin which we hope can remove the risk of hypoglycaemia and ensure optimal glucose control for people with diabetes,” said Marcus Schindler, Novo Nordisk’s senior vice president of global drug discovery, in a statement announcing the deal on Friday.
Novo Nordisk also reached a licensing agreement with a new firm, Carbometrics, that was spun out of Ziylo with a focus on glucose binding materials.
Earlier this year, Novo Nordisk announced a further expansion of its 264-acre campus in Johnston County.
The company will begin a $65 million expansion by the end of this year that will likely add almost two dozen new positions, Chad Henry, corporate vice president and general manager of the Clayton site, told NC Biotech Writer Barry Teater in February.
The expansion is for Novo Nordisk’s growing Diabetes Finished Products (DFP) facility, responsible for the formulation, filling, inspection, assembly and packaging of diabetes and obesity medicines. Construction should be completed by the fourth quarter of 2019, with full operations starting in 2020, Henry explained.
