G2G Bio is partnering with China's United Biotech (UBT) to evaluate the potential for developing long-acting injectables. Following successive collaboration agreements with global pharmaceutical companies, the company has secured a Chinese partner, expanding commercialization opportunities for its proprietary drug delivery platform, 'InnoLAMP.'
G2G Bio said Thursday that it signed an InnoLAMP platform evaluation agreement and a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) with UBT on the 19th regarding metabolic disease candidate compounds. The company stated it is demonstrating the global commercialization potential of next-generation formulation modification technology for 'once-monthly' administration, centered on obesity and diabetes treatments.
UBT is a company developing the obesity and diabetes drug candidate 'UBT251.' In March last year, it licensed this compound to Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company known for its obesity treatment 'Wegovy.' The deal includes an upfront payment of $200 million (approximately 266.3 billion won) and milestone payments of up to $1.8 billion (approximately 2.3969 trillion won) tied to development and commercialization stages.
It has not been confirmed whether UBT251 is the subject of this G2G Bio contract. Details such as the upfront payment were kept confidential by mutual agreement between the two companies. However, a G2G Bio official stated, "We plan to review whether InnoLAMP can be applied to UBT's candidate compounds," adding, "Given that we have been evaluating the InnoLAMP platform with multiple global big pharma companies, our goal is to complete evaluations within a few months."
This agreement has further expanded G2G Bio's global collaboration network. In 2025, G2G Bio signed a joint development contract for long-acting peptide injectables with Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim and subsequently signed an additional formulation development contract the same year to broaden the partnership.
Following this, in September, it signed a long-acting formulation development contract for obesity and diabetes treatment peptides with a European-based global pharmaceutical company. In March of this year, it signed development and licensing agreements for two candidate compounds, including a long-acting obesity treatment containing 'semaglutide' (a GLP-1 class drug), as well as a joint research agreement on drug delivery technology with Samsung Bioepis and EpixNexLab, accelerating the expansion of its partnerships.
InnoLAMP is a long-acting injectable platform that encapsulates drugs in micro-particles (microspheres) made of biodegradable polymers to allow for slow release within the body. It is designed so that as the polymer degrades after injection, the drug is released gradually, thereby extending the duration of efficacy. This reduces the number of injections required, improving patient convenience, while offering pharmaceutical companies the opportunity to develop new products by changing the administration method of existing drugs.
A G2G Bio official stated, "Developing long-acting formulations requires technology that can load sufficient drug amounts while controlling excessive initial release and maintaining levels over a certain period," adding, "InnoLAMP's high-capacity drug loading technology solves these issues while achieving production efficiency."
G2G Bio's InnoLAMP is assessed to have moved beyond the development stage into validation. At the American Diabetes Association meeting in June last year, the company presented poster data on the sustained-release preclinical profile of Eli Lilly's 'retatrutide,' a triple-acting agent with the same mechanism as UBT251 (less than 5% initial release over 24 hours, maintaining blood concentration for more than 28 days), aiming to enhance global trust in its technology. It is reported that the presentation attracted attention by emphasizing core competencies such as stable encapsulation and release control of high-dose substances within microspheres for long-acting injectables.
G2G Bio is building a second GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) plant, targeting completion in 2027, with an annual production capacity of approximately 7 million doses based on obesity and diabetes treatment standards. Although collaborations with global pharmaceutical companies are still at the evaluation stage, analysts suggest the company has taken preemptive measures considering commercial production resulting from expanded partnerships.
A G2G Bio official stated, "Through in-house research and partner compounds, we have secured high-capacity microsphere development experience for nearly all types of obesity and diabetes peptides, including GLP-1, dual/triple agonists, and amylin," adding, "As the number of obesity and diabetes treatment products expands and dosing options utilizing long-acting injectables are expected to diversify, we will expand global partnerships centered on InnoLAMP."
G2G Bio's CEO Lee Hee-yong said, "The InnoLAMP platform, which enables commercial production, is a technology recognized in the global market," adding, "We will continue to sign contracts while considering the competitiveness and pipelines of our global partners."
in THEBIO
