Mazdutide

Evidence suggests that incretin-based dual agonist pharmacotherapy is helpful in persons with obesity. Mazdutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 and glucagon receptor dual agonist, may have efficacy in persons with overweight or obesity.

In a phase 3, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in China, we randomly assigned, in a 1:1:1 ratio, adults 18 to 75 years of age who had a body-mass index (BMI; the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters) of at least 28 or had a BMI of 24 to less than 28 plus at least one weight-related coexisting condition to receive 4 mg of mazdutide, 6 mg of mazdutide, or placebo for 48 weeks. The two primary end points were the percentage change in body weight from baseline and a weight reduction of at least 5% at week 32, as assessed in a treatment-policy estimand analysis (which assessed effects regardless of early discontinuation of mazdutide or placebo and the initiation of new antiobesity therapies).

Among 610 participants, the mean body weight was 87.2 kg and the mean BMI was 31.1 at baseline. At week 32, the mean percentage change in body weight from baseline was -10.09% (95% confidence interval [CI], -11.15 to -9.04) in the 4-mg mazdutide group, -12.55% (95% CI, -13.64 to -11.45) in the 6-mg mazdutide group, and 0.45% (95% CI, -0.61 to 1.52) in the placebo group, and 73.9%, 82.0%, and 10.5% of the participants, respectively, had a weight reduction of at least 5% (P<0.001 for all comparisons with placebo). At week 48, the mean percentage change in body weight from baseline was -11.00% (95% CI, -12.27 to -9.73) in the 4-mg mazdutide group, -14.01% (95% CI, -15.36 to -12.66) in the 6-mg mazdutide group, and 0.30% (95% CI, -0.98 to 1.58) in the placebo group, and 35.7%, 49.5%, and 2.0% of the participants, respectively, had a weight reduction of at least 15% (P<0.001 for all comparisons with placebo). Beneficial effects on all prespecified cardiometabolic measures were seen with mazdutide. The most frequently reported adverse events were gastrointestinal and mostly mild to moderate in severity. The incidence of adverse events leading to discontinuation of the trial regimen was 1.5% with the 4-mg mazdutide dose, 0.5% with the 6-mg mazdutide dose, and 1.0% with placebo.

In Chinese adults with overweight or obesity, once-weekly mazdutide at a dose of 4 mg or 6 mg for 32 weeks led to clinically relevant reductions in body weight. (Funded by Innovent Biologics; GLORY-1 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05607680.).

Recent studies with peptide-based incretin therapies have focussed mainly on the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist semaglutide and the dual agonist tirzepatide that engages receptors for GLP-1 and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP). Randomised clinical trials and 'real-world' studies have confirmed the marked glucose-lowering and weight-lowering efficacy of these agents across diverse populations. These include different ethnic groups, young and elderly individuals with and without diabetes and/or overweight or obesity. Recent studies have also confirmed protections against the development and progression of cardiovascular and renal diseases that are additive to the benefits conferred by improved control of blood glucose and body weight. Emerging evidence suggests that incretin therapies could additionally ameliorate fatty liver disease, chronic inflammation, sleep apnea and possibly degenerative bone disorders and cognitive decline. New incretin-based peptide therapies in development include a long-acting glucagon receptor agonist (LY3324954), dual GLP-1/glucagon receptor agonists (survodutide, pemvidutide, mazdutide, G49), triple GLP-1/GIP/glucagon receptor agonists (retatrutide, efocipegtrutide), a combination of semaglutide with the amylin analogue cagrilintide (CagriSema), a unimolecular GLP-1/amylin receptor dual agonist (amycretin), and a GIP receptor antibody with GLP-1 receptor agonism (MariTide). The creation of multi-targeting incretin-based synthetic peptides provides opportunities for improved management of type 2 diabetes and obesity as well as new therapeutic approaches to an expanding list of associated co-morbidities. The aim of the review is to acquaint the reader with developments in the field from 2023 to the present (February 2025).