Obesity
Structure Therapeutics’ oral GLP-1 candidate aleniglipron showed 72-week efficacy “in line” with Novo Nordisk’s oral Wegovy, BMO Capital Markets wrote in a note to investors. Meanwhile, Structure’s amylin and calcitonin receptor agonist ACCG-2671 showed “impressive” target engagement in a Phase 1 trial of healthy volunteers, according to Leerink Partners.
Moonwalk Biosciences plans to shepherd its lead obesity asset into first-in-human trials in late 2027. In preclinical studies, MW101 has demonstrated weight loss and fat reduction while maintaining muscle mass.
Efficacy plateaus, muscle loss and weight rebound are testing the limits of GLP-1 success, pushing companies toward new mechanisms and multitarget designs to close the gap. But progress depends on understanding disease biology and selecting the right drug candidates to derisk clinical trials.
Current leaders Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk have cornered the early market for weight loss therapeutics, but several other players, large and small, are bidding for a piece of the potential $200 billion pie.
Eli Lilly’s best play for Foundayo is to bring it overseas, a more price-sensitive market where the pharma can more readily outcompete Novo Nordisk “given the high margins of a small-molecule therapy,” Truist analyst Srikripa Devarakonda told BioSpace.
Roche, through its subsidiary Genentech, will gain access to the investigational asset HM17321, which is designed to not only elicit weight loss but also improve lean mass.
The Phase 3 study is evaluating two doses of Novo’s Wegovy pill in people with obesity or overweight in combination with a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity.
Touting an “exceptional” gastrointestinal safety profile for its oral obesity drug candidate in a study of healthy volunteers, Enveda plans to test the asset in people stopping GLP-1 treatment.
Despite coming away with an early victory over Eli Lilly in the oral obesity face-off, analysts don’t expect Novo Nordisk’s lead to last for very long.
Beyond the legal action, Eli Lilly is calling on healthcare providers, regulatory authorities, online platforms and even logistics companies to help stem the illegal sale of its next-generation asset for weight loss.
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