Subtracting weight, nearly 80% is fat! Positive results of the new generation therapy announced

Altimmune recently announced the MOMENTUM Phase 2 clinical trial data of pemvidutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1)/glucagon dual receptor agonist for the treatment of obesity. A comprehensive analysis of patient body composition data showed that pemvidutide not only reduced weight but also maintained patients' muscle mass, with 21.9% of weight loss attributed to muscle mass and 78.1% to fat.

Dr. Scott Harris, Chief Medical Officer of Altimmune, stated to industry media Endpoints News during the American Diabetes Association (ADA) conference: "When naturally losing weight through diet and exercise, muscle mass loss is approximately 25%. Pemvidutide is at least as good as diet and exercise, which is the goal of drug therapy - to mimic natural weight loss effects without overdoing it."

The trial recruited 391 obese or overweight patients with at least one comorbidity and no diabetes. Participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1:1:1 ratio to receive 1.2 mg, 1.8 mg, 2.4 mg of pemvidutide, or placebo weekly for 48 weeks, along with diet and exercise. Some participants underwent body composition analysis.

At week 48, participants receiving 1.2 mg, 1.8 mg, and 2.4 mg doses of pemvidutide achieved average weight reductions of 10.3%, 11.2%, and 15.6%, respectively, compared to 2.2% in the placebo group. At the end of treatment, patients in the 2.4 mg dose group showed a near-linear decrease in weight. Among the 50 participants who received pemvidutide, a comprehensive body composition analysis based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed that the average muscle mass reduction was 21.9%, with 78.1% of weight loss attributed to fat. Additionally, pemvidutide significantly reduced serum lipid levels, improved blood pressure, and did not result in cardiac events, arrhythmias, or clinically significant increases in heart rate.

Pemvidutide is a novel investigational GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist being developed for the treatment of obesity and metabolic dysfunction-related non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Pemvidutide recently completed the MOMENTUM Phase 2 obesity trial and is currently undergoing the IMPACT Phase 2b NASH trial.