Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic, has developed a pill that can help people lose up to 13% weight in three months. According to new test results.
Amycretin is unusual in that it not only mimics the appetite-suppressing hormone GLP-1, like Ozempic, but also amylin, the hormone that makes you feel full. It helps control blood sugar levels.
Ozempic and similar drugs are injectable prescription medications, while Amicretin is a pill taken daily.
“A single molecule targeting both amylin and GLP-1 biology, delivered in pill form, could offer overweight and obese people a more convenient approach with better outcomes,” the researchers said before presenting their findings at the European Society for the Study of Diabetes conference in Madrid this week.
Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical giant that developed Ozempic and Wegovi, conducted a 12-week study in which overweight and obese people were given amicretin or a placebo, none of whom had diabetes.
Volunteers taking 50 milligrams of amicretin lost an average of 10.4 percent of their body weight over three months. Subjects taking twice that amount, the maximum dose tested, lost 13.1 percent of their body weight.
Placebo users experienced an average decrease of 1.1%.
By comparison, a recent study found that Munjaro patients lost 5.9% of their body weight over three months, compared with 3.6% for Ozempic users.
Side effects of amicretin include nausea and vomiting, but most are reported to be mild to moderate.
A Novo Nordisk spokesman told The Washington Post that the drug appears to be “safe” and “well tolerated.”
“Daily oral amicretin administered to overweight or obese non-diabetic adult participants demonstrated an acceptable safety and tolerability profile and resulted in significant weight loss in just 12 weeks,” the researchers wrote. Written in the summary.
“Furthermore, weight loss did not plateau, suggesting that further weight loss may be achievable with extended treatment,” the researchers added.
If Amicretin passes all the tests, it’s unclear when it might hit the market.
A phase 1 trial of a subcutaneous form of amicretin, which is administered as an injection like Ozempic, is due to be completed next year, while Novo Nordisk has begun a phase 2 trial of the drug in people with diabetes.
Dr. Andrea BedrosianThe director of bariatric and minimally invasive surgery at North Shore University Hospital, called weight-loss drugs “good news” for people struggling with obesity.
“Of course, further trials over longer periods are needed to determine the safety, efficacy and tolerability of this treatment,” Bedrosian, who was not involved in the study, told The Washington Post. “Judgment should be reserved until larger, longer-term phase 2 and 3 trials have been completed and published in peer-reviewed journals.”
The preliminary findings come amid growing popularity of Ozempic and similar drugs. It’s causing a nationwide shortage This is despite reports that the drugs can cause intestinal blockages, a rare blinding disease and even death.
Meanwhile, researchers have been testing the drugs to see what other treatments they might offer beyond weight loss.
