Pfizer, which discontinued a twice-daily version of the drug late last year, said Thursday that an improved, once-daily version of its weight-loss drug danugliplon will move into clinical trials later this year.
The new drug is one of a generation of second-generation weight-loss drugs being developed by companies including Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk that would offer patients a more convenient alternative to injections.
Some analysts predict that the weight-loss drug market, currently dominated by Novo Nordisk Inc.’s Wegobee and Eli Lilly Inc.’s Zepbound, will reach annual sales of more than $150 billion by the early 2030s.
The drugmaker has not disclosed an exact timeline for the drug’s development, and plans to evaluate multiple doses of an improved version of the drug later this year before moving forward with clinical trials.
Pfizer said last year it was focusing on developing a new version of danugliplon after discontinuing its twice-daily dose due to high rates of side effects such as nausea and vomiting, which caused most patients to drop out of mid-stage clinical trials.
The company had already withdrawn another weight-loss drug called rotiglipon over safety concerns that it raised liver enzyme levels in some patients.
Eli Lilly’s experimental weight-loss drug has a big time-to-market advantage over Pfizer’s, but he still has concerns about the drug’s side effects, JPMorgan analyst Chris Schott said in a research note.
He said he believes the role of this asset will be limited “unless the tolerability profile of the new formulation is clearer.”
Pfizer shares rose 2.8% to $29.14 in premarket trading.
The company’s shares closed at $28.35 on Wednesday but have lost more than half their value since hitting $61 in December 2021 due to plummeting sales of COVID-19-related products and investor concerns about its pipeline, including rotiglipron.
Pfizer said Thursday that early study results support the once-daily dosing, with no elevations in liver enzymes observed in more than 1,400 healthy adult volunteers.
GLP-1 was originally developed for type 2 diabetes and mimics the action of the GLP-1 hormone to regulate blood sugar levels, slow digestion and suppress appetite.
Other companies working on developing the next generation of weight-loss drugs include Amgen Inc. and Viking Therapeutics Inc.
Sales of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine and treatments have fallen sharply from peaks during the pandemic, putting Chief Executive Albert Bourla under pressure to drive growth with new medicines.
The company announced Tuesday that its chief scientific officer, Mikael Dolsten, is stepping down after more than 15 years with Pfizer.
