ProGen, Rani Therapeutics collaborate to develop weekly obesity capsule

ProGen, a Korean biopharmaceutical company specializing in advanced therapies for obesity and diabetes, said it signed a joint development agreement on June 17 with Rani Therapeutics, a U.S. clinical-stage company specializing in orally administered biologics and drugs.

The partnership aims to develop RPG-102/RT-114, an oral obesity treatment that combines ProGen's PG-102, a GLP-1/GLP-2 dual agonist, with Rani's oral RaniPill HC (high-capacity) capsules, referred to as RaniPill. 

Currently, Novo Nordisk's Rybelsus, the only drug in the GLP-1 analog market for the treatment of obesity, suffers from low bioavailability of around 1 percent, making daily administration inconvenient. In contrast, RaniPill capsules utilize microneedles to release drugs in the small intestine, enhancing drug delivery convenience, ProGen said.

"This partnership underscores Rani Therapeutics' commitment to enhancing the lives of those affected by chronic diseases like obesity, by introducing a shift from injections to convenient oral therapies," said Talat Imran, CEO of Rani Therapeutics, expressing enthusiasm about collaborating with ProGen to develop an oral treatment aimed at enhancing patient compliance and optimizing treatment effectiveness.

"We anticipate RPG-102/RT-114 to be a weekly oral treatment, leveraging the stability of PG-102 to increase drug exposure and potentially improve patient health through GLP-2's unique mechanism of action, with bioavailability nearing that of subcutaneous injections.”

Last Saturday at the American Diabetes Association (ADA), the two companies presented results of pharmacokinetic modeling that “confirmed high bioavailability” observed in the phase 1a trials, suggesting the potential of dosing ranging from every two weeks to monthly. Both companies expressed ambition to “advance the development of next-generation obesity treatments” by combining the convenience of RaniPill with the pharmacokinetic profile and tolerability of PG-102.

Under the agreement, ProGen and Rani Therapeutics will jointly develop and commercialize RPG-102/RT-114 globally, sharing costs and revenues equally. Rani Therapeutics will lead efforts in the U.S., Europe (including the U.K.), Canada, and Australia, while ProGen will lead in other territories such as Korea and Japan.

Kim Jong-gyun, CEO of ProGen, emphasized the significance of combining Rani Therapeutics' oral delivery technology with ProGen's experience in Fc-fusion proteins.

"Together, we aim to introduce RPG-102/RT-114 to the global market as a first-in-class, once-weekly oral dual-agonist for obesity treatment," he said.