Novo Nordisk's New Weight-Loss Drug Amycretin Shows 22% Body Weight Reduction in Early Trial

Intelligent Finance APP learned that Novo Nordisk (NVO.US) said on Friday that one of the company's experimental injectable drugs reduced weight by up to 22% in early trials, which boosted investors' confidence in the pharmaceutical company’s R&D pipeline. Boosted by this news, the company's share price rose more than 11% before the US stock market opened on Friday.

The company stated that among patients receiving the new drug called Amycretin, those who were injected once a week with the highest dose showed the most significant effects. In contrast, subjects receiving the placebo gained 2% in weight. Novo Nordisk added that its side effects are the same as other weight-loss drugs.

Following disappointing clinical trial results and reports that the company's current blockbuster drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy, will become targets for U.S. government Medicare price negotiations, Novo Nordisk is in urgent need of success in its new product pipeline. This new compound, currently in the early stages of clinical trials, is seen as a crucial asset for the Danish company in its competition with rivals such as Eli Lilly (LLY.US), the manufacturer of the weight-loss drug Zepbound.

This latest published result indicates that the effect of this experimental injectable drug may be better than Eli Lilly's Retatrutide. Previously, Retatrutide had been the benchmark for experimental weight-loss drugs.

Analyst Michael Shah said that this result "revitalized" Novo Nordisk's ability to challenge Eli Lilly.

Novo Nordisk's highly anticipated next-generation obesity drug, CagriSema, failed to meet expectations in a larger trial conducted last month. However, unlike CagriSema, Amycretin combines two weight-loss mechanisms in a single molecule. It simultaneously mimics the GLP-1 mechanism behind Ozempic and Wegovy, as well as another gut hormone called amylin. CagriSema also incorporates these two mechanisms but houses them in two separate compounds, requiring Novo Nordisk to use a complex dual-chamber injector for packaging. Novo Nordisk is also researching an oral version of Amycretin.

After the results were announced on Friday, Novo Nordisk stated that it is planning more clinical trials for Amycretin.