"Improved absorption of oral obesity drug"... Daewon Pharmaceutical to present research at U.S. conference

Results for oral semaglutide DW5324 unveiled
Drug exposure up to 3.14 times higher than with Rybelsus
Proprietary drug delivery technology applied... Phase 1 trial planned for 2027

Daewon Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. said on October 23 that it plans to present two sets of research findings on its oral semaglutide candidate DW5324 at AAPS PharmSci 360, the world's largest pharmaceutical sciences conference, to be held in New Orleans, United States, from October 25 to 28 (local time).

The presentations will cover preclinical and human pharmacokinetic (PK) study results for semaglutide, a diabetes and obesity treatment, using Daewon Pharmaceutical's proprietary oral drug delivery platform. The company's proprietary oral platform is an integrated drug delivery system that uses polymer and lipid complexes to optimize the molecular and interfacial properties of peptides and promote their absorption through the gastrointestinal tract.

According to the presentations to be delivered at the conference, the formulation showed up to 6.00 times greater permeability than the control in a parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA). In animal studies involving beagles, drug exposure in the body (AUC) increased by up to 6.41 times after a single dose.

Results from two human pharmacokinetic crossover clinical studies directly comparing the formulation with Novo Nordisk's Rybelsus (14 mg semaglutide) showed that the formulation incorporating the platform technology significantly increased AUC by between 1.90 and 3.14 times compared with Rybelsus. Peak blood concentration (Cmax) also increased by up to 2.90 times.

The company believes the technology has high commercial value because it provides a strong technical foundation for circumventing patent barriers through its proprietary Non-SNAC formulation design, without relying on SNAC, a key absorption enhancer protected by Novo Nordisk's foundational patents.

Following its presentations at the conference, Daewon Pharmaceutical plans to optimize the formulation and submit an application for a domestic Phase 1 clinical trial (IND) in 2027. It also plans to pursue discussions with global pharmaceutical companies on licensing its proprietary platform.

Kim Juil, Executive Vice President and Head of R&D at Daewon Pharmaceutical, said, "We will further optimize the formulation to meet global standards, advance product development without delay, and bring global technology exports into view. We will also expand the platform's applications to a range of biopharmaceuticals and establish ourselves as a game changer in the noninvasive drug delivery market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.