Transforming
weight management
Pephexia Theraputics develops innovative peptide-based therapeutics with ultra-long-acting profiles for an optimal solution to healthy weight management.
FOCUS AREA
1 in 4 adults in the western world are living with obesity, and the treatment landscape is rapidly scaling.
Current weight loss therapies are however suboptimal, since reductions in body weight are often accompanied by loss of lean mass, including muscle. This raises a growing concern especially in the aging population around obesity related sarcopenia, a condition characterized by the coexistence of excess adiposity and reduced muscle mass and function which places patients at a higher risk of significant medical comorbidity and disability than either obesity or sarcopenia alone. Addressing obesity requires an optimal approach to body composition, with a focus on reducing excess adiposity while preserving muscle mass.
NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC), 2024, The Lancet
1 in 4 adults in the western world are living with obesity1.
1OECD, 2022, Healthy Eating and Active Lifestyles: Best Practices in Public Health.
Sarcopenic obesity effects up to 27% of people aged over 602.
2Fanny Petermann-Rocha, 2022, J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle.
OBESITY
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UCN2: Optimizing Body Composition in Obesity
Urocortin 2 (UCN2) is an endogenous peptide belonging to the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) family and a selective ligand for the corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor 2 (CRHR2). Its distinct biology offers the potential to address multiple dimensions of cardiometabolic disease beyond weight loss alone.
Our preclinical studies have demonstrated that UCN2 can reduce appetite and body weight while supporting favourable changes in body composition, including selective reduction of adiposity in the face of increased muscle mass as well as muscle function and/or strength. UCN2 has also demonstrated encouraging effects on cardiovascular and renal parameters, suggesting the potential to deliver broader cardiorenal benefits alongside with the metabolic effects and weight reduction.
UCN2 offers a differentiated biology with the potential to deliver meaningful and durable improvements in weight, body composition, and cardiometabolic health.
MISSON
Improving lives of patients through development of innovative, ultra-long acting peptide-based therapies.
TEAM
The Team
Board of Directors
Scientific Advisory Board
Advisors
NEWS
Pephexia receives a Eurostars grant
July 7th 2025
We are thrilled to announce that PEPTOR, a project led by Pephexia, has been awarded a Eurostars grant totaling €1 million. This collaborative initiative includes Smart Scientific Solutions, Maastricht University (Netherlands), and Copenhagen University, Pephexia Therapeutics (Denmark), and is focused on developing novel peptide agonists for sarcopenia. The project thereby also explores a promising approach to support healthy weight loss in obese patients through muscle preservation. We are excited about advancing this innovative pipeline project through a strong and international partnership.
Pephexia strengthen the organizational set-up
February 18th 2025
Pephexia is maturing the organization and have promoted Dr. Søren Ljungberg Pedersen to Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), Head of Research, Dr. Kamilla Rolsted to Chief Operating Officer (COO), Head of Development, and Dr. Jenna Hunt E. Hunt to Director of Pharmacology. Keld Fosgerau Pephexia CEO comments: “I am pleased with this strengthening our organization. With our lead project for cancer cachexia today in non-clinical development, we have started preparing for the entry into the early clinical stages. This progress warrants a maturation of the executive management team and retention of core competences, and Søren, Kamilla and Jenna are key employees is this context.
Pephexia selected to participate in NLSinvest2024
August 28th 2024
From hundreds of high-quality applications the Nordic Selection Committee has chosen Pephexia Therapeutics as one of the Rising Stars to join Nordic Life Science Invest. Pephexia Therapeutics is pleased to be able to pitch before 120+ global investors joining the NLSInvest & Nordic Life Science Days.
Pephexia selected for an oral presentation at 11th Helmholtz Diabetes Conference
August 28th 2024
Pephexia Research Scientist Camilla Lund is selected for an oral presentation at the 11th Helmholtz Diabetes Conference specializing in wasting metabolism, Munich.
Pephexia selected for an oral presentation at 17th International Conference of the Society on Sarcopenia, Cachexia, & Wasting Disorders
August 28th 2024
Pephexia has been selected for an oral presentation at the 17th International Conference of the Society on Sarcopenia, Cachexia, & Wasting Disorders, Washington DC.
Pephexia receives a large Grand Solution grant from IFD
April 5th 2024
Pephexia in collaboration with Copenhagen and Leipzig Universities receives a 26.4MDKK Grand Solution grant from the Danish Innovation Fund (IFD) for the DAPHEXIA (Dual-Acting Peptides for treatment of cacHEXIA) project.
This large grant will enable submission of a clinical trial application (CTA) regarding Pephexia’s clinical candidate PEP-366 which is in development for cancer cachexia. We are honored to have received this significant grant and the continued support from IFD.
Pephexia moves to new facilities
February 8th 2024
After 2½ years at the BioInnovation Institute as a Creation House company and lately as a residence company Pephexia has matured as a company and will now move to new a facility at Fuglebakken, Nordre Fasanvej 215, 2000 Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, Denmark.
This move will give Pephexia access to own offices, shared laboratories, and other facilities and enable the company to grow.
Pephexia receives a grant from the Danish Innovation Fund
February 7th 2024
Pephexia have received an Innobooster Grant of 0.5M DKK from the Innovation Fund Denmark (IFD) to support a research project aiming to develop long-acting metabolic peptides for the treatment of Heart Failure.
This is the third Innobooster grant that Pephexia has received from IFD, the two previous grants have led to the nomination of a clinical candidate on our successful lead project for Cancer Cachexia.