Weight-loss pill from Wegovy makers cut body weight by up to 13% in early trial

Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, said its experimental weight-loss pill lowered participants' body weight by up to 13% after three months of its Phase 1 clinical trial.

The early findings show a greater weight loss than those who took Wegovy during a similar time frame, who lost about 6%.

The findings were presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual meeting, according to Reuters .

The daily pill, called amycretin, was also found to be safe and tolerable by the participants, who noted side effects similar to those of taking a GLP-1 medication such as Wegovy. The side effects included nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation.

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According to the German biotech news outlet Labiotech , amycretin works slightly differently than Wegovy in that it is both a GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist.

What that means is the drug contains a hormone that is released by the pancreas at the same time as insulin, affecting appetite and blood sugar levels, Labiotech reported.

The experimental medication has the potential to reduce hunger and slow stomach emptying even more so than drugs that are already on the market to treat obesity, like Wegovy.

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The pharmaceutical company also believes a once-daily pill, the delivery method for amycretin, will be more appealing to the general population than a weekly injection like Wegovy.