Metsera, a biotech firm, has announced promising results from its ultra-long-acting amylin injection MET-233i in a Phase I trial. The treatment showed an 8.4% weight loss after just 36 days of treatment, with some patients experiencing even greater reductions.
Guggenheim Partners, an investment bank, had identified Metsera’s early data as a “critical program milestone” this year and predicted that the readout could “substantially de-risk the program.” The company is developing MET-233i, which is the only potential once-monthly amylin in clinical development.
The Phase I study tested MET-233i on 80 patients who were overweight or obese but did not have type 2 diabetes. Results showed that those treated with 1.2-mg of MET-233i experienced significant weight loss compared to a placebo group. The treatment’s ultra-long-acting profile was demonstrated by the ability of patients to keep their weight off for more than four weeks.
Metsera’s shares rose by as much as 20% on Monday morning after the announcement. Analysts expect that the market for ultra-long-acting injectable incretin therapies could hit $19 billion by 2035.
This news comes amid growing interest in amylin therapies, which have several potential advantages over traditional GLP-1 drugs, including better tolerability and lower loss of lean mass. Leading weight-loss frontrunner Novo Nordisk is also developing an amylin therapy called CagriSema, but its Phase III trial results were underwhelming.
Metsera plans to continue its monotherapy study for MET-233i and test the treatment with its ultra-long-acting GLP-1 therapy MET-097i. Data from these trials are expected later this year or early next year.
Source: https://www.biospace.com/drug-development/metsera-shares-rise-as-monthly-weight-loss-injection-shaves-over-8-body-weight-at-36-weeks