Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN)’s Weight-Loss Drug Aids Muscle Preservation in Wegovy Users

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN) announced on Monday that its experimental drug, when combined with Novo Nordisk’s popular obesity medication Wegovy, helped patients preserve up to 51% of lean muscle mass while losing more fat in a mid-stage trial.

A pharmacist in a lab coat carefully analyzing a vial of medicine for its quality.

In the study involving 599 patients, those taking only Wegovy lost about 7.9 pounds of muscle, whereas those using both Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN)’s trevogrumab and Wegovy lost only 4.2 pounds. The combination also led to a body weight reduction of up to 11.3%, compared to 10.4% with Wegovy alone.

This result is an early success for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN) in the competitive race among companies developing obesity treatments that maintain muscle, aiming for a share of the $150 billion weight-loss market.

In addition, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN) revealed plans to license an experimental obesity drug from China’s Hansoh Pharmaceuticals in a deal valued up to $2.01 billion.

A triple combination of Wegovy, trevogrumab, and another antibody called garetosmab helped patients lose 13.2% of their body weight, though 28% of participants discontinued treatment due to side effects, the highest dropout rate in the study.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:REGN) is a New York-based biotech company that specializes in scientific discovery and drug development. The stock closed 0.11% higher on June 2.

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