The intestinal wall is like a gatekeeper, absorbing certain compounds while keeping others from passing through. To the medical field, the gastrointestinal tract is more like a black box, said Thomas von Erlach, CEO of startup Vivtex. Clinicians and scientists have long known that certain types of drugs are less suited for oral delivery, but ways to overcome the barrier posed by the GI tract have eluded them.
Vivtex is deciphering the mysteries of the intestine. The startup’s technology platform screens GI tissue and uses artificial intelligence and computational tools to figure out how to deliver molecules through it. Rather than developing its own drugs, Vivtex uses its technology to support the drug R&D of other companies. The startup now has its biggest partnership to date. Novo Nordisk is licensing select Vivtex oral drug delivery technologies in a deal that commits up to $2.1 billion to the startup, the companies announced Wednesday.
Vivtex, which is based in Boston and has an additional site in Schlieren, Switzerland, traces its origins to the lab of Robert Langer, an MIT scientist whose research has yielded many drug delivery startups. Von Erlach, who was a post-doctoral researcher in Langer’s lab, co-founded Vivtex in 2018 with Langer and MIT Professor Giovanni Traverso. The trio had developed a GI model system that captures the complexity of the intestinal tract and all of its mechanisms.
Drugs are made by combining active pharmaceutical ingredients with inactive ingredients called excipients. Excipients have different roles, ranging from binding the drug together to improving its stability. Certain excipients improve bioavailability — how much of a drug is absorbed by the body and available in the bloodstream to offer a therapeutic effect.
Vivtex’s technology evaluates how a pharmaceutical is absorbed by the intestine and how different combinations of known and available excipients can improve that. Von Erlach said this systemic approach can lead to custom oral drug delivery formulations for pharmaceuticals, including peptides, which aren’t easily absorbed by the gut.
“The key aspect that our technology offers is to essentially do this empirical testing in a very high throughput level,” von Erlach said. “Together with our computational tools and AI, we are able to tease out unexpected interactions and synergistic effects that ultimately give rise to a far superior ability to deliver the drugs versus what’s currently out there.”
Novo Nordisk already has orally administered peptide products: the diabetes medicine Rybelsus and oral Wegovy, the obesity pill approved by the FDA late last year. Semaglutide, a peptide engineered to activate the GLP-1 receptor, is the active ingredient in both. These drugs are made by formulating pills with salcaprozate sodium (SNAC), an excipient that acts as an enhancer to facilitate stomach absorption of semaglutide. But these drugs must be taken on an empty stomach and with up to 4 ounces of water. Patients must then avoid food or fluids for at least 30 minutes.
Von Erlach acknowledged the dosing restrictions for Novo Nordisk’s peptide pills and said Vivtex has thoughts on how to improve on them. He added that he cannot share specific details about what Vivtex will work on with its new partner, but speaking generally, his company aims to improve dosing convenience.
Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, both weekly injectable peptide drugs, currently dominate the obesity drug market. Pills are big part of the next wave of metabolic medicines. Wegovy pill has seen strong uptake since its launch. Eli Lilly could soon follow with orforglipron, an oral small molecule designed to activate the GLP-1 receptor. This pill is currently under FDA review. Other companies are in various stages of development with next-generation obesity medications, including some formulated as daily pills.
Vivtex’s publicly disclosed partners include Astellas Pharma, Equillium, and startup Orbis Medicines. No financial details or indications have been disclosed for those alliances. Vivtex raised some initial funding in its early years, but with partnership revenue, the 20-employee company recently became profitable, von Erlach said. He added that Vivtex is not currently seeking additional financing but may do so in the future. While Vivtex currently only partners with pharma companies, at some point the startup may explore developing its own drugs, he said.
As for the Novo Nordisk alliance, von Erlach said the research may encompass both commercialized medicines and therapies still in development. The $2.1 billion sum spans an upfront payment, research funding, and milestone payments, but specific details about those payments remain confidential. Following research and formulation selection, Novo Nordisk will assume responsibility for development, regulatory submissions, and manufacturing of drug candidates. If the pharma company commercializes drugs from the collaboration, Vivtex will receive royalties from product sales.
“We continue to push the boundaries of science through both internal and external innovation to fulfil our mission of treating millions more people living with obesity and diabetes and their associated comorbidities,” Novo Nordisk’s Brian Vandahl, senior vice president, therapeutics discovery, said in a prepared statement.
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