Amgen’s MariTide is steadily making its way toward the booming weight loss drug market, which is estimated to be worth about $200B by 2030. Last week, the biotech announced results of a Phase II, 52-week study of MariTide (maridebart cafraglutide, formerly AMG 133).  The study included overweight or obese people…

The biggest and most comprehensive analysis of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists on kidney and cardiovascular disease shows these drugs have significant benefits in people with and without diabetes. In both types of patients, the combined reduction in the risk of kidney failure, worsening kidney function, and death due to…

Phenomix Sciences, a biotech focusing on obesity phenotyping and biomarker testing, will partner with genetic testing and counseling provider InformedDNA to provide targeted obesity treatment based on underlying biology. Obesity is a very heterogeneous condition that can manifest for many different reasons. The approval of Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist Wegovy (semaglutide) for…

The obesity drug liraglutide (Novo’s Saxenda) is safe and effective in children aged 6 to 12 years, according to results of the SCALE Kids trial. The results were presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Madrid this week. The study was…

People with obesity have a higher risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2, according to a new study led by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. They used electronic medical record data on over 70,000 patients from their own hospital system.  Obesity is known to predict worse outcomes and…

Research led by Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Cambridge has discovered mutations in the gene TRPC5, located on the X chromosome, that can cause obesity and postpartum depression. This gene is expressed in the hypothalamus in the brain and is thought to impact a number of different…

Two separate Phase III clinical trials have shown that the diabetes and obesity drug tirzepatide led to significant decreases in the in the number of breathing interruptions during sleep of patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), setting it up as potentially the first medication to treat the disorder. The results…

A new genetic variant linked with obesity has been discovered, which could help explain weight gain for hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. The researchers believe their findings may unlock new obesity treatments and are hoping to run a trial to see if a widely available, low-cost thyroid medication might…

A report published in 2023, estimates that over 40% of adults in the U.S. have obesity, defined as a body mass index (BMI) of over 30 kg/m2. While not everyone in this group is unwell, there is no doubt that obesity increases the risk of associated health conditions such as…

A study led by the Navarra Institute for Health Research in Spain shows that specific gut bacteria are predictive of obesity, but that the species involved differ between men and women. Paula Aranaz, a researcher at the Center for Nutrition Research at the University of Navarra, will present the research…

A population-based study from Sweden indicates that children and teenagers who were overweight or have obesity are more likely to have high blood pressure in later adult years from 50 to 64 years of age. The research, to be presented at the upcoming European Congress on Obesity (ECO) next month…

Childhood obesity more than doubles the risk of later developing multiple sclerosis (MS), new research shows. The study will be presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity in Venice, Italy (May 12–15) presented by Claude Marcus and Emilia Hagman, the Karolinska Institute, and colleagues. Pediatric obesity is associated with…

Scientists at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and Geneva University Hospitals (HUG) have shed light on the far-reaching consequences of maternal obesity, particularly its role in predisposing unborn children to liver diseases and potentially liver cancer. Obesity, an epidemic looming large in many developed nations, not only poses a significant…

Individuals with obesity are more likely to have a benign blood condition that often precedes multiple myeloma, according to new research to be published in Blood Advances. People who are physically active, meanwhile, are less likely to have this condition, even if they are obese. Smoking and too little sleep…

Fauna Bio has announced a multi-year agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to apply Fauna’s Convergence artificial intelligence (AI) platform for preclinical drug discovery in obesity. Fauna’s unique platform analyzes data collected from animal hibernation biology (and other extreme adaptations) to identify drug targets for humans. The terms of this deal…