April 20, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Hanmi Pharmaceutical will seek to push one of its long-acting diabetes treatments into phase 3 clinical trials this year in hopes of making a leeway as global drug makers are scurrying to launch similar medications, according to a news report on Feb. 14.

Hanmi initially had planned to embark on phase 3 trials of efpeglenatide, a once-weekly glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1, receptor agonists, in 2016 but it delayed the program as production of the drug fell behind schedule.

“We are anticipating entering Phase 3 clinical study this year although the exact timing cannot be confirmed,” Hanmi CEO Lee Gwan-sun said in an interview with local news media outlet the Yakup Shinmoon daily.

His remarks comes as big global pharma companies like Nova Nordisk, AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly have launched their once-weekly GLP-1 agonists for patients with Type 2 diabetes.

“I am confident that efpeglenatide will become a strong player even if the market entry is a little late because its profile is superior in quality than other commercialized drugs,” Lee said.

Efpeglenatide is one of three new long-lasting diabetes treatments, collectively known as the “Quantum Project,” that Hanmi licensed out to Sanofi in 2015. They include efpeglenatide, a week-lasting insulin named LAPS-insulin115 and a combination of efpeglenatide and LAPS-insulin115.

The French drug maker, however, returned the rights of the insulin combination drug to Hanmi in December last year, sparking speculation that Hanmi’s diabetes therapies are losing their competitive edge due to slow progress in development.

Earlier this month, Sanofi also included efpeglenatide as one of drug candidates in its research and development pipeline, stating that phase 3 trials will begin in 2017.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)