COPENHAGEN, Feb 24 (Reuters) – Novo Nordisk and United Laboratories International said on Tuesday a Chinese mid-stage trial of their jointly developed “triple G” UBT251 obesity drug candidate resulted in a mean weight loss of up to 19.7% after 24 weeks.
The trial, conducted by TUL subsidiary United Biotechnology, investigated the safety and efficacy of different once-weekly injectable doses of UBT251 compared to placebo in Chinese people with overweight or obesity, Novo and TUL said in a statement.
From a baseline mean body weight of 92.2 kg, the highest mean weight loss observed for people treated with UBT251 was 19.7% compared to 2.0% in the placebo group after 24 weeks of treatment, the companies said.
“We are very encouraged by these data from the trial in China, which demonstrate the potential of UBT251,” said Novo Nordisk Chief Scientific Officer Martin Holst Lange.
WEIGHT-LOSS DRUG TARGETS COMBINATION OF HORMONES
UBT251 belongs to a class of drugs that target a combination of gut and pancreatic hormones to potentially attain greater weight loss compared to GLP-1 receptor agonists, such as Novo’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, which target only the GLP-1 hormone.
UBT251 targets GLP-1, GIP, and a third hormone, glucagon, hence the name “triple G”.
On Monday Novo unveiled data for its obesity drug CagriSema, which achieved a 23% reduction in body weight over 84 weeks. Eli Lilly’s tirzepatide, the active ingredient of Zepbound, sold in Europe as Mounjaro, achieved weight loss of 25.5% in the head-to-head trial.
Novo Nordisk recently initiated a global trial of different doses of UBT251 for up to 28 weeks in around 330 people living with overweight or obesity, with results expected in 2027, and also aims to initiate a type 2 diabetes trial.
The company in March last year bought global rights to TUL’s UBT251 in a deal worth up to $2 billion, obtaining exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and commercialise the drug, excluding in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
(Reporting by Louise Rasmussen; Editing by Terje Solsvik and Jan Harvey)
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