June 23, 2008 - Emisphere Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: EMIS) and Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE: NVO) have entered into an exclusive Development and License Agreement to develop and commercialize oral formulations of Novo Nordisk's proprietary GLP-1 receptor agonists, which have the potential of treating Type 2 diabetes, using Emisphere's eligen(R) technology. The agreement includes at least $87 million in product development and sales milestone payments to Emisphere, of which $10 million will be the minimum first year payment, as well as royalties on sales. The agreement also provides Novo Nordisk with the option to develop oral formulations of Novo Nordisk compounds other than GLP-1 receptor agonists using Emisphere's proprietary carrier technology. Further financial details of the agreement were not made public.
Under the new agreement, Novo Nordisk is responsible for the development and commercialization of the product candidates. Novo Nordisk and Emisphere have collaborated since 2007 on early-stage pre-clinical research that has preliminarily confirmed the utility of Emisphere's carriers to provide bioavailable oral formulations of GLP-1 receptor agonists... Emisphere Technologies' Press Release -
