ABSTRACT:
Semaglutide, a glucagon‐like peptide‐1 receptor agonist, stands as a paradigm of successful peptide drug development. Although absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion characteristics of semaglutide have been thoroughly studied in both animals and humans, a reliable in vitro screening model for evaluating metabolic behavior of semaglutide and other peptides remains an unmet need in drug development. This study established a novel ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled to high‐resolution mass spectrometry method to elucidate the species‐specific metabolic pathways of semaglutide. Semaglutide was incubated with liver S9 fractions from human, monkey, dog, rat, and mouse for 1 h, respectively. For the in vivo study, rats were subcutaneously injected with semaglutide (10 mg/kg) for subsequent plasma collection. Data‐dependent acquisition was performed to obtain the fragment ions, enabling identification of drug‐related materials. Notably, a diagnostic fragment ion at
m
/
z
469, formed from the cleavage of side chain, facilitated metabolite screening. Consequently, a total of 31 metabolites were detected and characterized, constituting a comprehensive metabolic profile of semaglutide in liver S9 fractions and rat plasma. Major metabolic pathways involved hydrolysis of peptide backbone. Our findings provided a robust methodological framework for the screening and metabolism prediction of peptide candidates, supporting the comprehensive safety and efficacy assessment.