Capitalising on strong demand for its obesity therapies, Novo Nordisk's growing appetite for deals has fuelled a bet on a U.S. gene-editing company called Life Edit Therapeutics.
The Danish drugmaker's collaboration with Durham, North Carolina-based Life Edit Therapeutics - owned by ElevateBio, a cell and gene therapy company in Waltham - is focused on up to seven programs for rare genetic disorders as well as cardiometabolic diseases.
At the heart of the tie-up is Life Edit's technology, called base editing, which is designed to make precise changes to the human genome by tweaking one base - or letter - into a different one without affecting other letters.
Single-letter mistakes, called point mutations, can give rise to genetic diseases.
The Novo deal comes as the company basks in the success of its incredibly popular weight-loss drug Wegovy, for which demand has far outstripped supply.
At the heart of the tie-up is Life Edit's technology, called base editing, which is designed to make precise changes to the human genome by tweaking one base - or letter - into a different one without affecting other letters.
Single-letter mistakes, called point mutations, can give rise to genetic diseases.
The Novo deal comes as the company basks in the success of its incredibly popular weight-loss drug Wegovy, for which demand has far outstripped supply.
In rare cases, listeria can lead to serious complications such as meningitis and sepsis.Getty Images