Alimentary/Metabolic
The company said it intends to maintain a focus on rare neuromuscular disease with apitegromab but could consider partnering in obesity.
Deal Snapshot: Including its internal efforts with bimagrumab, Lilly has been seeking a muscle-sparing therapy to complement GLP-1 obesity drugs, such as Zepbound.
Novo Nordisk will partner with privately held Deep Apple to study a novel, non-incretin target that could be better suited than GLP-1s for long-term obesity treatment.
Intended as obesity monotherapy and for combination with the firm’s GLP-1 analog, MET-0233i showed best-in-class efficacy with placebo-like tolerability at low doses.
Regeneron is bringing in its own GIP/GLP-1 agonist, establishing a path to develop proprietary obesity drug combinations with its internal muscle-sparing drugs.
Both high-profile failures and small investments that are yielding success so far characterize the dealmaking in MASH over the past 15 years or so.
Company surprises investors with Jørgensen's exit but insists its strategy will not change.
Lilly saw solid growth for its business in Japan last year on the back of several new launches and is building its obesity and Alzheimer's portfolios in the country.
Deal Snapshot: The Danish drugmaker is partnering with GPCR drug discovery expert Septerna to develop multiple small molecules for cardiometabolic targets.
The acquisition of Boston Pharma’s once-a-month FGF21 analog adds to GSK’s liver disease portfolio.
Join our China-based editors Dexter Yan and Xu Hu in this Chinese-language podcast looking at some of their recent interviews and other key coverage.
Novo Nordisk enjoyed a surprise GLP-1 agonist contracting win in the first quarter of 2025. This provided a welcome boost to its stock after it had spent the previous quarter on the back foot against rival Lilly.
The presentation and publication of the Phase IIIb study showing greater efficacy for Zepbound over Wegovy come at a time when competition has been heating up between the two obesity medications.
Despite the ability to initiate clinical trials quickly and having strong manufacturing capacity, Chinese companies are facing multiple challenges in the obesity space.
Lilly executives told the company’s Q1 call they were not surprised at the Wegovy deal, but some analysts said it could cut into prescription growth for Zepbound.
Over the past few months, Chinese developers of CNS and cardiometabolic therapies have attracted the interest of domestic investors, amid generally modest funding activity.
Two Phase III trials testing tegoprazan read out positively, but the potassium-competitive acid blocker will compete with Phathom’s Voquezna (vonoprazan).
The biotech reported Phase I multiple-ascending dose data for its obesity drug for the second time in a week, but its safety and tolerability do not offset concerns about relatively unimpressive weight reduction.
The company announced positive topline results for the oral GLP-1 drug in type 2 diabetes that beat expectations.
With the FDA asking for another Phase III trial, the short bowel syndrome drug apraglutide could be years away from market, while the Linzess patent expiry and near-term debt loom.