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The market for weight-loss drugs continues to grow, but the competition for the largest share of this expanding “pie” is intense. The American pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. is encroaching on Novo Nordisk’s territory. However, Novo Nordisk, the pioneer behind Ozempic, is now working to regain its lead.
It’s doing so with a double announcement.
Roadmap. More details are emerging about the drugs Novo Nordisk wants to use to replace its flagship treatments, Ozempic and Wegovy, both based on semaglutide.
Different compounds, different analogues. Semaglutide is the active compound in Ozempic and Wegovy. Originally developed as a diabetes treatment, the formulation acts as an analog of the GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1) hormone, a receptor agonist.
GLP-1 serves two main functions in the body: It signals the pancreas to produce insulin and sends a message of satiety to the brain. That second function led to the success of Ozempic and similar drugs as weight-loss treatments.
Novo Nordisk’s new formulations use compounds that act similarly to semaglutide but have unique characteristics that, in theory, make them superior.
CagriSema. Of Novo Nordisk’s new candidates, CagriSema is the most advanced. The drug combines semaglutide with cagrilintide, a compound that mimics the effects of amylin and calcitonin by binding to some of their receptors.
Amylin is a hormone similar to insulin, secreted by the pancreas and involved in glycemic control. As a result, CagriSema functions as a double (or triple) analog. However, initial test results were less positive than some had expected.
New data available. Novo Nordisk has now released the remaining trial data to evaluate the drug’s efficacy. According to Reuters, the study showed a 23% weight reduction in overweight adults and a 16% reduction in people with diabetes after 68 weeks.
Company officials also presented data on moderate adverse effects, which occurred in 79.6% of participants, and serious adverse effects, which affected 9.8% (with 6% dropping out of the trial). The company expects CagriSema to reach the market by early 2027.
Amicretin. Last week, Novo Nordisk announced the launch of Phase 3 trials for amicretin, a compound designed to build on semaglutide’s legacy. According to the company, amicretin is a long-acting unimolecular agonist of both GLP-1 and amylin receptors.
One notable aspect is that the drug is being tested for both subcutaneous and oral administration. Phase 3 clinical trials typically aim to supplement earlier data and examine additional aspects such as dosage and efficacy compared with existing treatments.
Novo’s other new products. In addition to its new formulations, Ozempic itself made headlines last week. The European Medicines Agency recommended the drug for treating peripheral arterial disease.
Image | Haberdoedas (Unsplash)
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