A small Wisconsin start-up company that has just opened a Raleigh site is already working on developing an oral insulin drug for dogs.
Helia Medical announced it has signed an agreement with a Malaysian drug company, Siogen Biotech, to develop the oral medicine for treating diabetic dogs.
The approach will use extremely small nanoparticles to carry and slowly release synthetic human insulin into diabetic dogs.
The companies aren't disclosing financial or other details about the arrangement, except to say it's to begin within the next couple of months.
Siogen is developing nanoparticle delivery systems for various substances.
Helia says its primary mission is developing novel and effective drugs, devices and nanoparticles for the veterinary medical world.