Led by executives who helmed The Medicines Co., Metsera Inc. has launched with $290 million in financing to develop drugs for treating weight loss, obesity-related conditions and metabolic diseases. The company is stepping into high profile and lucrative glucagon-like peptide-1 territory forged by Eli Lilly and Co.’s Zepbound (tirzepatide) for chronic weight management and Novo Nordisk A/S’s Wegovy (semaglutide), also approved for long-term weight management.
Eli Lilly and Co. is planning to file for U.S. FDA approval later this year after reporting that tirzepatide met all primary and key secondary endpoints in two phase III trials in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Assuming approval, tirzepatide could become the first drug approved specifically for OSA, while providing potential entry access for Medicare Part D coverage, which is denied for the GLP-1 class of drugs approved as obesity medications.
Follow-on biologic makers in China have been working to capitalize on looming patent cliffs of blockbuster biologics. Advancing biosimilars of denosumab (Prolia/Xgeva; Amgen Inc.) and semaglutide are the latest examples.