Despite meeting the primary endpoints in a Phase 3 trial, shares of Zealand Pharma dropped in premarket trading Thursday as the up to 9.8% weight loss reflected inferior loss to that generated by competitors.

Original title: “Zealand dips as Boehringer Ingelheim-partnered weight loss drug fails to impress—again”

EloraTZP—a combination of an amylin asset and Eli Lilly’s approved obesity drug Zepbound—made a clean sweep of the primary and secondary endpoints in a mid-stage trial of adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes, setting up the launch of a Phase 3 trial before the end of the year.

Original title: “Superior weight loss, blood sugar control propel Lilly’s amylin-GIP/GLP-1 combo into Phase 3”

Eli Lilly’s weight loss pill Foundayo has had a “slower-than-hoped” launch, according to BMO Capital Markets, which contended that the indirect comparison data—despite falling short of definitive proof of superiority—could help the Indiana giant build momentum for its oral drug.

Original title: “Lilly builds commercial case for GLP-1 products over Novo with indirect analyses”

genetics of obesity discovery biology prediction and therapeutic implications

Original title: “Genetics of Obesity: Discovery, Biology, Prediction, and Therapeutic Implications.”

The experimental weight-loss drug is a triple agonist and the first of its kind to reach a phase 3 clinical trial Next-generation weight-loss drugs just hit a new milestone: In a phase 3 clinical trial, retatrutide helped people with type 2 diabetes lose an average of up to 49.6 pounds, or more than 20 percent of body weight—a first for the field—according to the drug’s maker, Eli Lilly. Importantly, trial participants also saw significant reductions in blood sugar, as well as lower cholesterol and blood pressure—both of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Drugs such as tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound, target two receptors: GLP-1 and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP). Retatrutide targets three: GLP-1, GIP and glucagon. It’s the first such “triple agonist” to be put to the test in a phase 3 clinical trial—the gold standard test needed for the U.S. A separate clinical trial, also funded by Eli Lilly, found that participants with obesity who were not diabetic saw an up to 25 percent loss in body weight over the course of 80 weeks when they received the same doses of retatrutide. Retatrutide is not side-effect-free, however. Dosed participants in TRIUMPH-2 have reported diarrhea, constipation, nausea and vomiting. (Seven people died during the course of the study, the Lancet paper notes, but their deaths were determined to be unrelated to the treatment.)

Original title: “Blockbuster retatrutide trial signals a ‘new high-water mark’ for weight-loss drugs | Scientific American”

The deal, which hands Novo a challenger to Lilly’s market-leading Zepbound, comes as the Danish drugmaker looks to calm investor fears about its future.

Original title: “Novo to pay Hengrui up to $2.6B for a once-weekly obesity pill”

Roche’s anti-myostatin therapy emugrobart is unlikely to elicit meaningful weight loss, according to an interim mid-stage analysis, prompting the pharma to return the asset rights to its subsidiary Chugai Pharmaceutical.

Original title: “Roche cuts muscle-sparing obesity drug after mid-stage disappointment”

Investors looking for more transformative business development at Novo will have to wait, but a new partnership with China’s Hengrui Pharma adds a new weekly oral option to the Danish pharma’s early pipeline.

Original title: “Novo adds long-term obesity differentiation in up to $2.6B Hengrui deal”

semaglutide for treating paediatric craniopharyngioma related obesity a multicentre case series

Original title: “Semaglutide for Treating Paediatric Craniopharyngioma-Related Obesity: A Multicentre Case Series.”

Novo’s latest alliance involves injectables given every one to three months. Elsewhere, Nektar won a legal spat with Eli Lilly and the FDA issued two approvals.

Original title: “Novo pursues long-acting obesity drugs; Acadia slumps on Alzheimer’s data”

Enveda, which is using AI tools to mine plants and microbes for drug prospects, has three candidates in human testing for immune diseases and obesity.

Original title: “Enveda, an AI drugmaker, banks $311M in venture funding”

Trial participants mostly kept their weight down after switching from a weekly shot to less frequent dosing — findings that could strengthen Viking’s “competitive positioning,” one analyst wrote.

Original title: “Viking shares surge on updated obesity drug data”

Novo has “gone shopping” to fill pipeline gaps, with a focus on obesity and diabetes, plus an expansion in blood and endocrine disorders, liver diseases and cardiovascular conditions.

Original title: “Novo’s plan to hit $23B in revenue by 2035 leaves investors wanting”

Investors and analysts have been hounding Novo to beef up its pipeline and advance new molecules as a majority of the company's sales stem from its semaglutide franchise.

Original title: “Novo buys three early-stage obesity assets from Kallyope as investor pressure mounts”

The multi-drug partnership with Orbis Medicines—which Novo has backed since the biotech's seed rounds—is focused on cardiometabolic targets, but the technology at the center of the deal could deliver oral weight loss candidates. Obesity rival Eli Lilly has also helped fund Orbis.

Original title: “Novo notches up to $1.4B pact with Orbis to develop oral macrocycle cardiometabolic drugs”

Watch this discussion on how GLP-1 drugs for obesity are changing the shape of U.S. healthcare. From direct-to-consumer portals to pharmacy deals, how these drugs reach patients is changing—and leading to debates over pricing and coverage. Learn how your company can be both patient-forward while also maximizing revenue in this unique environment.

Original title: “Webinar: The Massive Scale of GLP-1s: Evolving Health, Healthcare and Markets”

tirzepatide and the incidence of atrial fibrillation in adults with overweight or obesity an updated meta analysis of randomized controlled trials

Original title: “Tirzepatide and the Incidence of Atrial Fibrillation in Adults With Overweight or Obesity: An Updated Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.”

The California biotech plans to bring its first drug, enabled by licensing technology from a Chinese drugmaker, into clinical testing for obesity by the end of 2027.

Original title: “Moonwalk reloads with $70M and new RNAi prospects for 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.

Original title: “Structure’s obesity portfolio impresses on GLP-1 and amylin fronts in dual data drop”