Chinese Pharma Shines at EASD 2024 with Breakthrough Anti-Diabetic Drug Candidates

　　【Pharmaceuticals Network Industry DynamicsFrom September 9 to 13, the 60th Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD 2024) was held in Madrid. At the meeting, Chinese pharmaceutical companies such as Hengrui Pharma, Huadong Medicine, Gan&Lee Pharmaceuticals, and Hansoh Pharma shone brightly, with their new hypoglycemic drugs attracting widespread attention.
 

Specifically, the preclinical study results of HDM1005, a GLP-1/GIP dual-target long-acting agonist independently developed by Huadong Medicine, were invited for an oral presentation at the conference. The research results showed that the preclinical candidate compound (PCC) demonstrated maximum activation Emax comparable to GLP-1(7-37) on GLP-1 receptors (GLP-1R) in vitro, acting as a full agonist. In animal models, particularly in experiments involving elevated blood glucose levels after sugar loading in mice, the PCC significantly inhibited the rise in blood glucose. Additionally, the bioavailability in cynomolgus monkeys exceeded 30%. Currently, the enrollment for the Phase II clinical study of HDM1002 tablets has been completed, targeting weight management in overweight or obese adults. In randomized, double-blind trials conducted in China, 60 subjects received 28 days of treatment with doses ranging from 50-400mg, confirming the safety and tolerability of the HDM1002 tablets. Dose groups of 100mg or more showed significant weight loss by Day 28, with effects increasing alongside the dose; the average weight reduction in the target dose groups was 4.9%-6.8%. The main study results are expected to be released in Q4 2024.
 

Hansoh Pharma, the parent company of Hansoh Pharmaceuticals, has officially released the Phase II clinical research data of HS-20094, a GLP-1R/GIPR dual-target agonist independently developed by the company, in the form of an oral report. This study is a 4-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase II clinical trial aimed at evaluating the therapeutic effects of HS-20094 in T2DM patients with poor blood glucose control. The results showed that HS-20094 demonstrated a generally good safety profile in T2DM patients, with most adverse events being mild or moderate. No significant dose-dependent or serious adverse events were observed.
 

Gan&Lee Pharmaceuticals announced for the first time at the conference the positive results of two clinical studies, Phase Ia and Ib, of the insulin weekly formulation GZR4 injection: GZR4 demonstrated good safety and tolerability in both healthy individuals and patients with type 2 diabetes, with a single dose providing steady blood glucose reduction lasting for a week. In patients with type 2 diabetes receiving once-weekly dosing, after six weeks of treatment, the glucose-lowering effect of GZR4 was superior to that of insulin degludec.
 

In addition, Hengrui Pharma disclosed the Phase II clinical trial data on the efficacy and safety of GLP-1/GIP dual receptor agonist HRS9531 in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the form of a Late Breaking Abstract [1]. The results showed that HRS9531 significantly reduced glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels by 2.7% in T2DM patients, improved blood glucose target achievement rates, reduced body weight, and demonstrated good tolerability, indicating its great potential in the obesity field. The research results presented at EASD showed that HRS9531 effectively lowers blood glucose and reduces weight with good tolerability and low hypoglycemia risk, further supporting the clinical development of HRS9531 for treating T2DM. As clinical trials progress, HRS9531 is expected to become one of the important drugs for treating T2DM.
 

Diabetes is a chronic disease characterized by high blood sugar, caused by an absolute or relative deficiency in insulin secretion and utilization disorders. The number of patients is vast, currently approximately 537 million, and is expected to increase to 783 million by 2045. China has the largest number of diabetes patients globally; from 2011 to 2021, the number of diabetes patients in China increased from 90 million to 141 million, a rise of 56%. This enormous patient population is driving continuous growth in the diabetes drug market. Data shows that the scale of China's diabetes drug market reached 133.892 billion yuan in 2023. However, there remains a significant unmet treatment need among the broad patient base. As the aforementioned pharmaceutical companies increasingly focus their efforts, the future holds promise for providing patients with more treatment options.
 

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