Ziylo
Ziylo were bought by pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk's for $800m (£623m) in 2018 in a deal which gave them full rights to develop glucose responsive insulins.
The World Health Organization estimate that over 382 million people worldwide, including 4.05 million people in the UK, have diabetes – a metabolic disorder affecting blood sugar levels. Everyone with Type 1 diabetes and some people with Type 2 diabetes need to take insulin, either by injection or a pump, to control their blood glucose levels.
Ziylo has developed an innovative technology platform, which could be a key component to enable the next generation of insulin, able to react and adapt to glucose levels in the blood, therefore eliminating the risk of hypoglycaemia – dangerously low blood sugar levels – and leading to better metabolic control for people living with the disease.
The biotech company has sealed the deal with Copenhagen-based pharmaceutical giant, Novo Nordisk, who will gain full rights to Ziylo’s glucose-binding molecules, which have the potential to become a revolutionary treatment for diabetes.
Ziylo’s synthetic molecules will be combined with glucose-responsive insulin developed with Novo Nordisk, which could lead to better metabolic control for those living with diabetes. Diabetes is the 7th leading cause of death in the world; it is estimated that 382 million people are living with diabetes worldwide, with most of those needing to take insulin.
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The Journey
Novo Nordisk has bought Ziylo to fuel its work on next-generation insulins. The takeover gives Novo control of a platform that could support development of insulins that respond to glucose.
Glucose-responsive insulin has huge potential. Such an insulin would have a better therapeutic index than today’s drugs, resulting in tighter control over glucose levels and a lower risk of hypoglycemia. The insulin could circulate in the bloodstream in an inert form, only to activate when it detects a rise in glucose levels.
Researchers have worked on the idea for decades without much success but there have been signs of progress in recent years. In January, Merck publishedpreclinical data on a glucose-responsive insulin. Researchers at MIT and other organizations are working on the problem, too.
Novo, with its heavy reliance on diabetes, can ill afford for a rival to develop a next-generation insulin that crushes its key franchise. In looking to secure itself a spot at the front of the pack, Novo zeroed in on Ziylo, a University of Bristol spinout that is developing synthetic molecules that are selective for glucose in blood.
Denmark’s Novo offered more than $800 million in upfront and milestone payments to bag its target. Neither party has shared a breakdown of the payments, but the deal is likely to be very backloaded. Ziylo is yet to move candidates based on its platform into human testing. In fact, Ziylo has focused more on the diagnostic potential of its platform than the therapeutic applications prior to the Novo deal.
Novo is freeing the Ziylo team to continue working on the diagnostic uses of its technology at a new spinout, Carbometrics. The spinout has the right to use the platform in non-therapeutic applications, chiefly continuous glucose monitors. Novo has formed a research collaboration with Carbometrics to receive ongoing help with the optimization of glucose binding molecules.
Marcus Schindler, SVP of global drug discovery at Novo, thinks the combination of expertise will fuel the advance of the programs.
“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 insulins which we hope can remove the risk of hypoglycemia and ensure optimal glucose control for people with diabetes,” Schindler said in a statement.
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Started ICURe programme
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What companies had to say about the Innovate UK ICURe programme?
“Novo Nordisk, as the leader in the diabetes field, is the ideal company to maximise the potential of the Ziylo glucose binding molecules in glucose responsive insulins and diabetes applications, and it brings hope of a truly ground-breaking treatment to diabetes patients."
A spin-out company from the University of Bristol, Ziylo went through the ICURe programme to validate their idea in the marketplace. Harry Destrecroix founded the company whilst finishing his PHD at the University of Bristol.
Dr Harry Destrecroix
Founder of Ziylo
Future Goals
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