While still a student, Knudsen worked at Novo Nordisk, initially working on laundry detergent enzymes. Alongside fellow student Shamkant Patkar, she discovered an enzyme capable of removing microscopic strands of cotton that pill up on clothing from repeated wear. After this project, Knudsen joined full-time as part of a research group at Novo Nordisk that aimed to identify new treatments for
diabetes, by developing
small molecule drugs targeting specific metabolic pathways. Knudsen's team screened numerous chemical compounds to identify whether they could bind to the
GLP-1 receptor sufficiently to stimulate insulin secretion. Eventually, they developed a new compound called
liraglutide, which is an agonist for the
GLP-1 receptor. It is a
chemical analogue of
GLP-1, with a fatty acid and spacer attached. These modifications increased its ability to dissolve in water and bind to
albumin, which increase its
bioavailability—its lifetime in the bloodstream, and so the duration of its action in the body. Knudsen’s team, specifically Jesper Lau and Thomas Kruse, then worked on what became
semaglutide, which had greater stability and affinity to albumin, lengthening its duration of action further to a once-weekly drug. Semaglutide was approved in the United States under the brand name Ozempic as a treatment for type 2 diabetes in 2017, and under the brand name Wegovy, as a first injectable (at 2.4 mg once weekly), for chronic weight management in June 2021. ==Impact==