Mazdutide Achieves 18.6% Weight Loss in Adults With Obesity

Innovent Biologics has reported positive Phase 3 data from the GLORY-2 study showing that once-weekly mazdutide, a dual glucagon (GCG)/glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, produced substantial and sustained weight loss in Chinese adults with obesity. The results were presented at the American Diabetes Association (ADA) 2026 Scientific Sessions and simultaneously published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), highlighting growing international recognition of the therapy.

The results follow positive Phase 3 findings from the GLORY-YOUNG study in adolescents with obesity, supporting mazdutide’s potential across a broad obesity population.

Scientific Context

Obesity remains a major health challenge in China and is strongly associated with type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, fatty liver disease, and other cardiometabolic disorders. Patients with moderate-to-severe obesity often have limited treatment options despite a significant disease burden.

Mazdutide combines GLP-1 receptor activation with glucagon receptor agonism, a dual mechanism that supports weight loss and metabolic improvement through effects on appetite regulation, energy expenditure, glucose control, and lipid metabolism.

Trial Design and Outcomes

The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled GLORY-2 study (NCT06164873) enrolled 462 adults with obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m²), including 16% with type 2 diabetes. Participants were randomized 2:1 to receive mazdutide 9 mg or placebo alongside lifestyle intervention for 60 weeks.

At week 60, mazdutide achieved a mean weight reduction of 18.55% compared with 3.02% for placebo. Additionally, 44.0% of treated participants achieved at least 20% weight loss versus 2.6% in the placebo group. All primary weight-loss comparisons reached statistical significance (P<0.0001).

Weight reduction continued throughout treatment without reaching a plateau. Among participants without type 2 diabetes, mean weight loss reached 20.08%, while 48.7% achieved at least 20% weight reduction compared with 3.1% of placebo-treated participants.

Cardiometabolic and Hepatic Benefits

Mazdutide also improved multiple cardiometabolic risk factors, outperforming placebo in reductions in waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, non-HDL cholesterol, and serum uric acid.

In participants with elevated liver fat content at baseline, MRI-PDFF analysis showed a 71.9% reduction in liver fat with mazdutide compared with a 5.1% increase with placebo, supporting its potential across obesity-related metabolic disorders.

Safety Findings

Mazdutide demonstrated a favorable safety profile, with most gastrointestinal adverse events reported as mild to moderate and transient. Treatment discontinuation due to adverse events occurred in 2.9% of participants receiving mazdutide, while no placebo-treated participants discontinued therapy. No new safety signals were identified.

Regulatory Path

China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) accepted the New Drug Application for mazdutide 9 mg in adult weight management in November 2025. The drug is already approved in China for chronic weight management and glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes.

Innovent continues to expand mazdutide’s development across obesity-related conditions, including Phase 3 studies in adolescent obesity, obstructive sleep apnea, and obesity with hypertension, alongside ongoing programs in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and a head-to-head trial against tirzepatide.

Reference

The Phase 3 GLORY-2 study of mazdutide 9 mg in Chinese adults with moderate to severe obesity was simultaneously published in JAMA and presented at the ADA Scientific Sessions