Fractyl Health’s GLP-1-based pancreatic gene therapy has outperformed semaglutide injections for weight loss at least in mice.
In a presentation Oct. 4 at the annual conference of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, or EASD, the company presented data showing that a single dose of its GLP-1 PGTx, known by the trade name Rejuva, was able to reduce body fat by about 25% in a mouse model of Type 2 diabetes, compared to roughly 18% in animals that were given daily doses of semaglutide.
Semaglutide is marketed by Novo Nordisk as Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for weight loss. The drug has sparked a gold rush in the obesity market with companies trying to improve on the market leader. Fractyl is behind bigger names like Pfizer and Eli Lilly, which has received a diabetes approval for its Mounjaro. Novo, meanwhile, has been stacking its pipeline with next-gen options.
“We aim to design a better GLP-1 therapy which has the potential for more potency, better tolerability, and more durability,” Fractyl Chief Scientific Officer Timothy Kieffer, Ph.D., said in a press release. “[Rejuva] has the potential to offer these benefits because it targets the pancreas, is designed to mimic human physiology, and may provide durable benefits that persist after the treatment itself.”
