Eli Lilly & Co. is acquiring the shares of Protomer Technologies it does not already own, in a $1 billion deal designed to enhance Lilly's diabetes pipeline with Protomer's insulin technology.
Lilly had previously purchased a 14% stake in the company, which has a proprietary peptide- and protein-engineering platform that can be used to identify and synthesize molecules that can sense glucose or other endogenous modulators of protein activity. California-based Protomer, founded in 2015, has used this approach toward advancing a portfolio of therapeutic candidates, including glucose-responsive insulins that can sense sugar levels in the blood and automatically activate as needed throughout the day.
According to Lilly, this glucose-sensing insulin is “the next frontier and has the potential to revolutionize the treatment and quality of life of people with diabetes by dramatically improving both therapeutic efficacy and safety of insulin therapy.”
Read the press release.
