Two Merck research scientists, Nancy A. Thornberry and Ann E. Weber, Ph.D. received the 2011 Discoverers Award, the highest honor from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), for their leadership in the discovery of JANUVIA® (sitagliptin), a once-daily pill that helps patients with type 2 diabetes control glucose in conjunction with diet and exercise. Weber and Thornberry are the first two women in Merck’s 120-year history to lead the team that discovered a new medicine. And for the first time in the Discoverers Award’s 24-year history, women alone were honored for their special achievements of exceptional benefit to humankind.
When JANUVIA was approved, it was the first new oral medication for diabetes in more than a decade, and the first medicine approved by the FDA to inhibit the enzyme DPP-4. By inhibiting DPP-4, JANUVIA helps prevent the degrading of a natural hormone that signals the pancreas to release insulin. Today, JANUVIA is being prescribed to millions of patients with type 2 diabetes and demonstrates Merck's commitment to develop therapies to improve human health around the world.
When JANUVIA was approved, it was the first new oral medication for diabetes in more than a decade, and the first medicine approved by the FDA to inhibit the enzyme DPP-4. By inhibiting DPP-4, JANUVIA helps prevent the degrading of a natural hormone that signals the pancreas to release insulin. Today, JANUVIA is being prescribed to millions of patients with type 2 diabetes and demonstrates Merck's commitment to develop therapies to improve human health around the world.