New Delhi: While patients in India familiarize themselves with the once-weekly GLP-1 injectable routine,
Lupin
is betting on a biweekly brand to leapfrog its rivals in country’s booming type-2 diabetes and
weight-loss drug
markets.
Without disclosing the deal financial terms, earlier this week the Mumbai-based drugmaker announced an exclusive distribution agreement with China’s
Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals
, in-licensing India rights of an investigational fortnightly
GLP-1 receptor agonist
, ‘
Bofanglutide
.’
Besides its biweekly administration edge, looking at its initial readouts, clinical expert suggest that the novel molecule could be “significantly more effective” than existing molecules, particularly semaglutide—a GLP-1 receptor agonist—and tirzepatide—a GIP/GLP-1 dual agonist.”
Speaking to ETPharma, Dr. Sujoy Ghosh Consultant - Endocrinologist at Manipal Hospital, Kolkata shared that, "in a head-to-head trial, the investigational molecule:
bofanglutide
(GZR18) demonstrated an average weight reduction of “4.25 kg to 6 kg over a 24-week period, which is significantly higher than semagutide which reported 3.5 kg weight loss over the same period.”
Under the same Phase 2b clinical trial, Bofanglutide injection also showed superior reduction in HbA1c levels—key marker for diabetes—precisely by 2.28 per cent from baseline after 24 weeks, against “-1.6 per cent” from
semaglutide
group.
The trial (NCT06256549) was conducted in China over 272 patients with type-2 diabetes and the molecule innovator and trials sponsor Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals had shared the findings at the 85th Scientific Session of the American Diabetes Association’in June this year.
Meanwhile, regarding Tirzepatide, Dr. Ghosh said that the head-to-head trial comparing the two molecules is currently underway in the US, and results are yet to be announced.
According to Dr Ghosh, Bofanglutide has a munch longer fatty-acid chain as compared to semaglutide and has a “stronger albumin binding (protein binding) as a result of which the drug is more resistant to clearance by the DPP-4 enzyme.”
“The receptor binding profile of the molecule is similar to the native GLP-1s,” he added.
“Bofanglutide has similar side effects as other molecules, with a potentially slightly lower gastro-intestinal issues. However, as the molecule is still undergoing its Phase 3 study, (GRADUAL ) we need to wait for arriving on definitive conclusions ” Dr Ghosh said.
In India where the injectable GLP-1 space has seen a strong upward movement with the entry of blockbuster brands —Mounjaro (Tirzepatide), Wegovy (Semaglutide)---Dr Ghosh says that as a new molecule Bofanglutide offers a better dosing route, but its adoption will also hinge on its affordability for patients in the country.
Drugmakers worldwide are increasingly betting on lower-dose GLP-1 regimens, and besides Gan & Lee, companies such as Pfizer and Amgen are also exploring once-monthly injectables.
Notably, while Lupin’s deal is exclusive for the biweekly formulation, Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals is also investigating the molecule higher dosage strength as a once-monthly solution.
Pfizer which had failed to bring once-monthly oral pills, is attempting a second bout through its $10 billion Metsera deal where it has onboarded multiple once-monthly options such as MET-097i,, MET-233i, among others.
Growing at an unprecedented pace the anti-obesity market is emerging as a center of attraction across the world and with the GLP-1 class cementing its place as the preferred treatment choice, domestic drugmakers in India are pulling out all stops to materialize this momentum.
By
Abhijeet Singh
,