The U.S. FDA approved Allurion Technologies Inc.’s premarket application for its swallowable gastric balloon system, which features its Smart Capsule, for weight loss. The clearance is boon for the company as GLP-1 agonists gets increasingly adopted to treat obesity. The approval also brings to the market a new non-invasive option to patients looking for alternative ways to lose weight.
Coming off a U.S. FDA approval of the first GLP-1 in pill format, Novo Nordisk A/S leaned further into oral drug delivery efforts, partnering with Vivtex Corp. to develop next-generation oral formulations of peptide and protein therapeutics in a potential $2.1 billion deal that marks the highest-profile news for Vivtex since the firm spun out of MIT in 2018.
Ascletis Pharma Inc. raised HK$843.53 million (US107.93 million) in a placement on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to advance its lead program, ASC-30, a small-molecule glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that can be dosed once monthly subcutaneously and once daily orally for treating obesity.
Viking Therapeutics Inc. said after-market hours Feb. 11 that it plans to advance its oral dual GLP-1/GIP receptor, VK-2735, into a phase III trial for obesity in the third quarter of 2026. VK-2735 is a novel dual glucagon-like peptide-1 and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GLP-1/GIP) receptor agonist.
Ascletis Pharma Inc. raised HK$843.53 million (US107.93 million) in a placement on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to advance its lead program, ASC-30, a small-molecule glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that can be dosed once monthly subcutaneously and once daily orally for treating obesity.
Novo Nordisk A/S’ television ad introducing the tablet form of its weight-loss drug, Wegovy (semaglutide), to American consumers didn’t pass regulatory muster.
True to its word, Novo Nordisk A/S filed a patent infringement lawsuit in U.S. district court against Hims & Hers Health Inc. over compounded versions of Novo’s semaglutide products.
Trumprx.gov launched with much fanfare late Feb. 5, and the online tool brings promise for the “world’s lowest prices” on prescription drugs. Alongside the website hoopla came word from Hims & Hers Health of its own steep discounts on what’s to be the compounded version of a Trumprx-featured therapy: oral Wegovy (semaglutide) for obesity. Novo Nordisk A/S, Wegovy’s originator, vowed to fight.
Sciwind Biosciences Co. Ltd. said Jan. 30 it won Chinese approval for self-developed glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, ecnoglutide (Xianyida), to treat adults with type 2 diabetes.
At a recent Cabinet meeting, U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy reportedly said he expected Trumprx to probably go live within 10 days. That was Jan. 29, two days before HHS was once again forced to shut down many of its activities due to a congressional gridlock over a fiscal 2026 appropriations package to keep the department and several others open beyond Jan. 30.
