Alveus Therapeutics targets lasting weight loss with new drug approach
For many patients using GLP-1 medications, maintaining weight loss is a significant challenge. Raj Kannan, CEO of Alveus Therapeutics, notes that biological adaptations often cause individuals to regain weight after stopping treatment. Studies show that patients typically regain about 60% of the lost weight within a year of discontinuing GLP-1 drugs.
Alveus Therapeutics is focusing on solving this issue with its lead asset, ALV-100, a phase 2 drug designed for weight maintenance. The company’s approach combines a GIPR antagonist and a GLP-1R agonist, similar to Amgen’s investigational drug MariTide. Alveus is conducting clinical trials to test ALV-100’s effectiveness in sustaining weight loss and exploring dose-escalation strategies to improve safety and tolerability.
The company aims to develop a patient-friendly dosing regimen, with the drug’s long extended half-life potentially allowing for quarterly or even less frequent dosing. Alveus also has three preclinical programs targeting the metabolic hormone amylin, which other major pharmaceutical companies like AbbVie, Pfizer, and AstraZeneca are exploring for its potential to produce superior weight loss with fewer side effects.
Other companies, such as Eli Lilly and Viking Therapeutics, are also investigating weight maintenance strategies. Alveus expects readouts from its trials next year and hopes to move two of its amylin strategies into the clinic within the next 18 months. The goal is not to compete directly with established players but to carve out a complementary niche in the obesity drug ecosystem.