An experimental new weight reduction capsule from Danish pharmaceutical big Novo Nordisk might be twice as efficient as its blockbuster Ozempic and Wegovy jabs, early outcomes from a small trial have instructed, sending the agency’s shares hovering.
The drug amycretin precipitated individuals to lose 13 p.c of their physique weight over three months, in line with the outcomes of a part one trial introduced by the corporate.
Earlier trials have discovered that Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy medicine result in round six p.c physique weight reduction over the identical interval.
Nonetheless specialists emphasised that considerably extra analysis was wanted to determine the long-term effectiveness and security of amycretin.
Nonetheless, the announcement at an investor occasion on Thursday despatched Novo Nordisk’s shares capturing up greater than eight p.c.
The immense reputation of this new technology of medicine known as GLP-1 agonists have already made Novo Nordisk Europe’s most beneficial firm, at the same time as overwhelming demand has sparked main inventory shortages.
In contrast to different semaglutide medicine reminiscent of Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro, amycretin was taken as a capsule, fairly than a once-weekly injection.
Much like these medicine, amycretin mimics the appetite-reducing intestine hormone GLP-1.
However it additionally mimics one other hormone known as amylin.
“This method appears to be just a little bit extra thrilling, from the restricted knowledge that we’ve got,” Daniel Drucker, a researcher on the Canada’s College of Toronto, instructed New Scientist.
However way more knowledge was wanted, he mentioned, including that amycretin has not been straight in comparison with different medicine in a head-to-head trial.
Novo Nordisk’s government vice chairman for growth Martin Holst Lange instructed the investor occasion that amycretin has the “potential of displaying the identical efficacy and security as CagriSema,” one other of the agency’s GLP-1 agonist medicine which targets amylin.
The outcomes from a trial of an injectable type of amycretin are anticipated in some unspecified time in the future subsequent 12 months, he mentioned. The agency would then look into an “bold additional growth programme,” he added.
For the amycretin trial, which concerned 16 individuals with a mean weight of 89 kilograms, these given a placebo misplaced one p.c of their physique weight over 12 weeks.
GLP-1 agonists have been discovered to chop the danger of heart problems related to weight problems – however additionally they heighten the danger of gastrointestinal issues, research present.
Analysis has additionally demonstrated that when individuals cease taking the medicine, they largely regain the burden that they had misplaced.
