Novo Nordisk to acquire obesity drug developer Inversago

(Reuters) – Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk said on Thursday it would acquire Canadian company Inversago Pharma in a $1.07 billion deal including the development of an appetite regulator.

Inversago is a privately owned company which develops therapies pitched at people with obesity, diabetes and metabolic disorders, the Novo Nordisk said in its second-quarter report.

Inversago’s lead asset is INV-202, a cannabinoid receptor blocker, which has shown weight loss in a phase 1b trial and is now in phase 2 development.

The Wegovy drugmaker said it expects the acquisition to be completed in 2023 provided that unspecified development and commercial milestones are met.

(Reporting by Boleslaw Lasocki; editing by Jason Neely)

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