Regeneron Inks $2 Billion Deal with Hansoh Pharma for Global Rights to GLP-1/GIP Dual Agonist HS-20094

On June 2, 2025, Hansoh Pharma announced a global licensing agreement with Regeneron worth over $2 billion, granting itGLP-1 (Glucagon-Like Peptide-1)/GIP（Glucose-Dependent Insulinotropic Polypeptide，Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptideThe global exclusive development and commercialization rights for the dual receptor agonist HS-20094 outside of mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao.

Source: Regeneron official website

According to the agreement, Hansoh will receive an upfront payment of $80 million and is eligible for up to $1.93 billion in milestone payments, as well as double-digit percentage royalties on future product sales. This transaction not only reflects the strong interest of multinational corporations (MNCs) in dual-target agonists for weight loss and blood sugar control but also demonstrates the clinical value and industrial prospects of the GLP-1/GIP combination mechanism.

Currently, the only GLP-1R/GIPR dual receptor agonist approved for marketing globally is Tirzepatide. As a star target in the metabolism field, GLP-1R/GIPR is becoming a focal point for pharmaceutical companies, with Chinese enterprises accelerating their efforts in this track. Nearly all GLP-1R/GIPR agonists that have entered Phase III clinical trials globally are from Chinese pharmaceutical companies. The rapid progress of pipelines produced in China has also attracted increasing attention and willingness for collaboration from international large pharmaceutical enterprises.

Summary of GLP-1 Drug Transactions Produced in China in Recent Years

Eli Lilly, Roche and other multinational pharmaceutical companies are accelerating their layout in the new "fat reduction and muscle gain" track. Eli Lilly introduced the muscle-targeting drug bimagrumab through the acquisition of Versanis and is co-developing it with its star drug tirzepatide, while also collaborating with China's Laikang Medicine to advance LAE102, exploring multi-target synergistic treatment pathways. Last year, Hansoh Pharma’s HS-20094 quickly attracted interest from several giants and finalized a Regeneron deal shortly after its Phase II data was unveiled at the ADA annual meeting, making "data out, deal in" the new norm in the innovative drug track. This collaboration between Hansoh and Regeneron further marks the entry into the 2.0 era of weight loss treatment, where the therapeutic goal shifts from simple weight loss to high-quality "fat reduction and muscle gain." Regeneron also plans to combine HS-20094 with its muscle-protecting drug Trevogrumab to address the issue of muscle loss caused by GLP-1 class drugs, providing patients with a more comprehensive metabolic health improvement solution. As the 2025 ADA annual meeting approaches, the industry widely anticipates a new wave of transaction热潮 in the hypoglycemic and weight loss field.

To meet the drug development needs for metabolic diseases such as hypoglycemia and weight loss, ACROBiosystems has developed a series of reporter gene cell lines, overexpression cell lines, and recombinant protein products based on the signaling mechanisms related to GLP1R, GIPR, and GCGR molecules.

• Overexpression Cell Line:High, Medium, and Low Expression Levels of GLP1R Overexpressing Cell Lines，High, Medium, and Low Expression Levels of GIPR Overexpressing Cell Lines，High, medium, and low expression levels of GCGR-overexpressing cell lines: GLP1R, GIPR, and GCGR antigens are stably expressed on the surface of host cell membranes over the long term, fully meeting the needs of various application scenarios such as early drug discovery and screening, and studying the function of target proteins at levels close to their natural expression.

• Recombinant Protein:GLP1R，GIPR，GCGR: Featuring high purity, high activity, and high batch-to-batch consistency, it is suitable for applications such as immunity research, antibody screening, and functional verification of candidate drugs. Moreover, to address the challenges of low expression levels and the difficulty in obtaining the native intact conformation of the seven-transmembrane proteins GLP1R and GCGR, ACROBiosystems Bai Biosciences has successfully developed full-length GLP1R and full-length GCGR proteins expressed in the HEK293 system, leveraging its "MembraneMasterpiece" multi-transmembrane target protein development technology platform. The biological activity of the full-length GLP1R protein has been validated through GLP1R agonist binding, while the full-length GCGR protein has been verified by GCGR monoclonal antibody binding, comprehensively advancing the development process of drugs targeting GLP1R and GCGR.

• GLP1RReporter Gene Cell Line: Expression Validated by FACS

Cell surface staining was performed on Human GLP-1R (Luc) HEK293 Reporter Cell (Cat. No. CHEK-ATF096) or negative control cell using PE-labeled anti-human GLP-1R antibody.

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• GIPRReporter Gene Cell Line: Can Be Used for Agonist Screening

This reporter cell (Cat. No. CHEK-ATF104) was incubated with serial dilutions of Tirzepatide (a dual GLP-1R and GIPR agonist). The EC50 of Tirzepatide was approximately 0.042 nM.

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This reporter cell (Cat. No. CHEK-ATF103) was incubated with serial dilutions of Retatrutide (a triple agonist peptide of GCGR, GIPR and GLP-1R). The max induction fold was approximately 79.93.

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Passage stability analysis of receptors expression by FACS.
Flow cytometry surface staining of human GLP-1R on HEK293/Human GLP-1R Stable Cell Line (High Expression) (Cat. No. CHEK-ATP160) demonstrates consistent mean fluorescent intensity across passage 7-22.

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• Full-length GLP1R protein: High biological activity validated by ELISA

Immobilized Biotinylated Human GLP1R Full Length Protein, Flag Tag&His,Avitag (Cat. No. GLR-H82D3) at 1 μg/mL (100 μL/well) on streptavidin (Cat. No. STN-N5116) precoated (0.5 μg/well) plate can bind Glutazumab with a linear range of 0.06-2 ng/mL (QC tested).

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>> Click on the image to learn about metabolic disease drug development tools

>> Click on the image to learn about Membrane Masterpiece | Multi-transmembrane Target Proteins

>> Click on the image to learn about the one-stop cell line solution

References:

1.https://www.easd.org/media-centre/home.html#!resources/b-efficacy-and-safety-of-hs-20094-in-patients-with-type-2-diabetes-a-randomised-double-blind-placebo-controlled-phase-2-trail-b