New Weight Loss Drugs from Novo Nordisk and Federal Biotechnology Help Patients Lose Weight
Novo Nordisk and United Biotechnology announced that an experimental obesity drug they are co-developing helped patients lose weight in a mid-stage clinical trial conducted in China.
The results of this trial were released one day after Novo Nordisk's new product sustainability plan suffered a setback, as an independent late-stage comparative study showed that its candidate obesity drug, CagriSema, did not outperform Eli Lilly's Zepbound. This indicates that pharmaceutical companies are rushing into the weight-loss market with a new generation of drugs.
Novo Nordisk developed blockbuster drugs for obesity and diabetes, including semaglutide (Wegovy) and Ozempic. The company pioneered GLP-1 class drugs, but was later surpassed by Eli Lilly and is now trying to catch up. This Danish pharmaceutical giant recently launched a tablet version of semaglutide in the United States and is advancing several candidate weight-loss drugs in its research pipeline.
On Tuesday, Novo Nordisk and United Biotechnology’s parent company, United Laboratories International Holdings, stated that in this Chinese study, the drug named UBT251 led to an average maximum weight loss of 19.7% after 24 weeks of administration.
UBT251 is different from Novo Nordisk’s current product portfolio as it treats obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other diseases through three different hormones. It combines GLP-1 (the gut hormone simulated by semaglutide and Ozempic, used to suppress appetite) with a mimetic of another hormone, GIP (used to reduce appetite and blood sugar), as well as glucagon (used to prevent hypoglycemia).
The two companies stated the drug appeared to have good safety and tolerability, with some mild to moderate gastrointestinal side effects that diminished over time.
They added that all dose groups of UBT251 showed significant improvements over placebo in key secondary endpoints, including waist circumference, blood glucose, and blood pressure.
The two companies stated that the study, aimed at assessing the safety and efficacy of once-weekly injections of UBT251, was conducted by United Biotechnology in China. The company plans to advance the drug to late-stage trials for overweight/obese patients in China based on the latest results.
Novo Nordisk has also launched a global early- and mid-stage clinical trial of UBT251 at different doses, with a maximum duration of 28 weeks, and results expected next year. The company also plans to start a mid-stage trial in patients with type 2 diabetes later this year.
The two companies are co-developing the drug under an agreement signed in March last year, worth up to $2 billion, which is one of several deals Novo Nordisk has made to supplement its new product sustainability plan. The company also attempted to acquire US startup Metsera, but lost out to Pfizer in a bidding war.
Editor: Liu Mingliang
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
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