On March 8, Ge Longhui Biotech (06955.HK) announced that the company's self-developed duracopeptide injection (“BA5101”) has completed phase III clinical trials (clinical efficacy, safety and immunogenicity comparison studies) in China and plans to submit a marketing application. BA5101 is a biosimilar to Trulicity for blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes. As far as the company knows, BA5101 is the world's first duracopeptide biosimilar to complete phase III clinical trials, and is leading the way in development.

Duracopeptide is a long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist given once a week. Compared with other types of hypoglycemic agents, duropeptides can improve the function of pancreatic beta cells and stably and effectively reduce blood sugar and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. Furthermore, its unique mechanism of action does not easily cause hypoglycemia, can reduce body weight, blood lipids, and the risk of long-term cardiovascular disease, and also has a protective effect on the kidneys. In addition, several clinical studies have shown that duropeptides can be administered once a week to reduce the inconvenience of patients when taking medication and increase compliance.