Nordic biotech company Pila Pharma, founded and chaired by former Novo Nordisk researcher Dorte X. Gram, has recently raised 10 million SEK in directed issue for a novel obesity-related study.
An intense battle is being fought for global market shares in the world of weight-reducing medicine, where major players such as Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are the frontrunners. Now, a smaller Nordic biotech company, Pila Pharma, which is stock listed in Sweden, is aspiring to enter the scene. The company has recently raised 10 million SEK in a directed share issue to study drug tolerance and the effects of the company’s molecule on obesity. The Phase-2a-study will be conducted over the next year and could be decisive for the company’s future.
Pila Pharma was founded in Malmö, Sweden in 2014 by Native Dane, Dorte X. Gram. With a background as a veterinarian, Dorte X. Gram has been researcher at Novo Nordisk, where she was part of the obesity research team. She was the scientist that identified and highlighted the molecule that would later become Semaglutide, which today is the pillar of Ozempic and Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s injectable obesity drugs.
According to Pila Pharma, the capital raised will support the study with the objective to assess the molecule’s safety in increased dosages, as well as to expand on the number of study participants to determine, though empirical statistical calculations, whether the molecule has potential as part of a new tablet-based obesity treatment.
– When the company was founded 10 years ago, obesity was barely recognized as an disease. But it certainly is today. The industry has traditionally focused on Type-2 diabetes, which is also a major market, but in recent years a new market for weight-reducing drugs has emerged. The new molecules, primarily of the type GLP-1, are highly potent, enabling them for potentially quick and significant weight loss in individuals with certain types of obesity, says Gustav H. Gram, CEO of Pila Pharma.
A Growing Market
In 2024, the industry is becoming increasingly focused on the concept of ‘functional weight loss,’ where weight loss is gradual but with a higher preservation of muscle mass. This is evident where GLP-1 is combined with other types of molecules. A lot of attention is also given to the development of oral solutions – tablet-based treatments – such as Pila Pharma’s.
The company notes that they are at a stage, where the hypothesis behind their technology has matured to a degree where it can be concretized and tested. The company will now initiate a study aimed at developing a new type of drug with a different mechanism for the enormous market for weight loss drugs, which is estimated to exceed €100bn / £80bn annually in 2030.
– We’re still at an early stage when it comes to the concepts surrounding weight loss medication, but with demand being as huge as it is, there will be room for many types of products. With this new capital we aim to explore whether we can lower body weight and thereby play a role in the market and potentially position ourselves uniquely by being the only company working with this particular mechanism for the treatment of obesity and other metabolic diseases, says Gustav H. Gram, referring to a potential partnership or acquisition. He adds:
– Obesity research has been a long time underway, and we are only now seeing major capital investments, as the potential benefits are now clear for all to see. It’s a global tendency that is a result of a global problem, and of course we want to tap into that a with a different solution.
The Next Big Step
Pila Pharma is in phase 2 of development of their innovative medicine, which can potentially aid in weight loss for obese type-2 diabetics. The company hopes to see the results of the study in about a year from when the study commences, and if successful, they will most likely look to continue with a larger phase 2b study.
In earlier studies, the company demonstrated good safety and signs of efficacy in regulating type-2 diabetes as well as a significant reduction in a biomarker that indicates risk of heart failure. The molecule is thus suggested to also have a strong cardiovascular profile in addition to the effects regarding blood sugar regulation and potentially weight reduction.
– If our study shows an effect on obesity, we will be the first and only company to have successfully used this type of molecule – a TRPV1-antagonist – for the treatment of metabolic diseases. Until now, this drug class has mostly been recognized in association with pain management. If the results are positive, we will be in a unique position to develop what we in the industry call a “first-in-class”-product. Not only would this be a significant achievement in the medical history, it would also position us as one of the few global late-phase biotech companies that is listed, with potential to enter the vast market for obesity medication, says Gustav H. Gram.