New Roche Drug Petrelintide Shows 10% Weight Loss in Trials
A new weight-loss drug called petrelintide has shown promising results in clinical trials. The treatment, developed by Roche, helped participants lose over 10 percent of their body weight on average after 42 weeks. Unlike some existing therapies, it also caused fewer side effects like vomiting and nausea.
Petrelintide works by restoring sensitivity to leptin, a hormone that signals fullness. This helps people feel satisfied earlier, reducing overall food intake. The drug was tested in the Zupreme-1 study, though details on participant numbers or selection criteria remain undisclosed.
By week 42, those on petrelintide lost more than 10 percent of their body weight, compared to just 1.7 percent in the placebo group. Women responded particularly well, losing around six percentage points more than men in the highest-dose group. Side effects were milder than with standard GLP-1 treatments. No vomiting occurred among petrelintide users, whereas these therapies can cause vomiting in up to 24 percent of patients. Nausea also decreased once participants reached the maintenance dose, and rates of diarrhoea and constipation matched those in the placebo group. Discontinuation rates were lower in the petrelintide groups (8.4 percent) than in the control group (13.6 percent). In the highest-dose cohort, 98 percent of participants reached the maintenance dose, and only 4.8 percent stopped due to adverse events—similar to the 4.9 percent rate in the placebo group. Roche now plans a Phase III trial based on these findings. Additional data from the **Zupreme-2 study** is expected later this year. The company will also test petrelintide combined with its lead compound, CT-388, in a separate Phase II trial.
The results suggest petrelintide could offer a more tolerable weight-loss option with fewer gastrointestinal side effects. Roche's upcoming trials will further assess its effectiveness and potential benefits when combined with other treatments. If successful, the drug may provide a new approach for long-term weight management.
