Boehringer's survodutide cuts visceral and liver fat

A new obesity drug candidate has demonstrated significant reductions in harmful fat deposits and sustained weight loss in two pivotal late-stage trials, according to detailed data released by its developer. The experimental once-weekly injectable, survodutide, showed it could substantially cut visceral and liver fat while preserving lean mass in adults with obesity or overweight, potentially offering benefits beyond weight reduction alone.

Boehringer Ingelheim presented the findings from its phase 3 SYNCHRONIZE-1 and SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD trials at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions, with simultaneous publication in The New England Journal of Medicine and Nature Medicine. The SYNCHRONIZE-1 trial involved 725 adults without type 2 diabetes. After 76 weeks, participants on the highest dose of survodutide (6 mg) lost an average of 16.6% of their body weight from baseline, compared to 3.2% for those on placebo, according to the primary efficacy analysis. A separate analysis showed a mean weight loss of 13% versus 5.4% for placebo.

A critical prespecified substudy using MRI scans revealed that the weight loss was driven predominantly by fat reduction. Survodutide...