NPM-139 utilizes the Alameda, California-based company’s NanoPortal platform technology, under development for chronic weight management. Vivani designed NanoPortal technology to steadily deliver medication over extended periods of time.
The company aims to guarantee correct doses for patients while avoiding potential safety concerns around fluctuating drug release profiles. It can also deliver large hydrophilic molecules, including peptides and proteins. The company believes this enables a broader range of therapeutic applications.
With Novo Nordisk, a pharmaceutical giant and leader in insulin and GLP-1 therapies, Vivani has no exclusivity provisions for NPM-139 or its proprietary NanoPortal technology. The companies plan to evaluate the delivery of Novo Nordisk’s lead semaglutide application with the implant.
Separately, Vivani expects to initiate a Phase 1, randomized, first-in-human study for NPM-139 in mid-2026. It plans to use Wegovy injections as an active comparator, seeking to characterize the safety, pharmacokinetics, and tolerability of NPM-139. This would support the initiation of a Phase 2 dose-ranging study, pending results.
Adam Mendelsohn, Vivani president and CEO, said:
“The new agreement announced today supporting our semaglutide implant program in chronic weight management demonstrates Novo Nordisk’s interest in evaluating our technology and its lead semaglutide application. This agreement reinforces our confidence regarding the market opportunity for our GLP-1 implants under development. We believe that our NanoPortal implants under development, including NPM-139, could address a growing segment of patients who would prefer a convenient once- or twice-yearly treatment option and the peace of mind that treatment could be stopped at any time if that became necessary.”
