According to the Securities Times app, Zealand Pharma, known as the "new noble of weight-loss drugs", is targeting the "next generation" of weight-loss drugs. This also means that Novo Nordisk (NVO.US) and Eli Lilly (LLY.US), which have dominated the highly demanding weight-loss drug market, may soon face the strongest competitor. Zealand's CEO Adam Steensberg announced the early trial results of their GLP-1 weight-loss drug in a media interview, emphasizing that another more powerful candidate drug sets them apart.

Steensberg also stated in the interview that despite ongoing acquisition rumors, Zealand Pharma is actively seeking pharmaceutical partners to help target the global market.

CEO Steensberg told the media on Thursday that early trials of their experimental anti-obesity injection showed higher quality and less muscle loss with fewer side effects compared to traditional GLP-1 treatment methods. He added that the company is currently seeking a global-focused pharmaceutical company to collaborate with.

"What we're actually focusing on is what we'll need in the 2030s, and it's actually building up, you can think of it, not a GLP-1-based next-generation molecule," Steensberg said.

Last month, Zealand Pharma from Denmark announced positive results from phase 1b trials of their weight-loss drug Dapiglutide. Dapiglutide is a GLP-1/GLP-2 receptor dual agonist. It pits the company against the world's top obesity treatment drug manufacturers Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly in the monopolized weight-loss drug market under the 'Noli' banner, with the GLP-1 mode drugs Wegovy and Zepbound currently considered as 'miracle weight-loss drugs' due to their good weight-loss effects and very limited side effects, enjoying great popularity.

However, Steensberg stated that the company's other obesity candidate drug - Petrelintide, known as the 'next-generation weight-loss drug', is a very long-acting insulin analog. This may set it apart in the competition with Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly's weight-loss drugs, providing a potential high safety alternative for the obese population intolerant to GLP-1, with a potential market size possibly much larger than GLP-1 type anti-obesity drugs.

"This is the jewel in the crown of weight loss. The 'next generation weight loss drug' is where we have the highest expectations," said Stensberg in an interview.

"We strongly feel that this could become the future cornerstone of weight loss therapy - it can provide patients with the positive weight loss effects they seek, but with better tolerance," he added.

Insulin mimetic vs. GLP-1

Insulin mimetics are a recent emerging method of weight loss treatment. They increase satiety by mimicking important human hormones that are co-secreted with insulin in the pancreas. This is different from GLP-1 agonists, which mimic the intestinal glucagon-like peptide hormone to suppress appetite and regulate blood sugar.

Insulin is an important hormone secreted by the pancreas, which works together with insulin to regulate blood sugar and reduce food intake by regulating the signal pathways of satiety. Therefore, compared to GLP-1, insulin mimetics focus more on appetite and metabolism regulation, with a more significant effect on appetite suppression, as insulin's action is more direct and related to the central feedback mechanism of satiety.

For newcomers to the weight loss drug market such as Zealand Pharma, the potential of insulin has not yet been fully developed, while GLP-1 drugs already have a large market share. Therefore, developing insulin mimetics can expand into new treatment areas, especially for obese patients without diabetes.

"These are two completely different human experiences," Stensberg said when comparing GLP-1 to insulin mimetics. "If you focus on satiety, it will be a more pleasant experience. So once you get into it, you can choose to undergo long-term treatment with almost zero side effects."

It is understood that the absolute leader in the weight loss drug field - also from Denmark - novo-nordisk a/s is also testing its own insulin mimetic treatment model, combining GLP-1 core component semaglutide with the insulin mimetic Cagrilintide in a weight loss candidate drug called CagriSema. However, in terms of research and development investment, research team size, and clinical trial progress, they are all behind Zealand Pharma.

In June, Zealand Pharma also announced the positive results of the Phase 1b trial of the insulin analog Petrelintide, which showed that with 16 weekly injections, the participants' average weight decreased by 8.6%.

The company stated at the time that the research results indicated that the drug's potential as a GLP-1 alternative received strong support. Following the biotech company's performance report for the first half of the year in August, Stensbørg's research team increased their bet, stating that the insulin analog could potentially become a "cornerstone therapy for future weight management".

"If we could develop a molecule that allows patients to reduce weight with very benign tolerance characteristics and we could significantly reduce the risk in terms of cardiovascular health, I think we have good reason to believe it could become a first-line therapy." Stensbørg said in a media interview on Thursday.

Seeking pharmaceutical partners globally.

Zealand Pharma was founded nearly thirty years ago, focusing on peptide drugs. In recent months, as it further expanded into the field of obesity treatment, the company's development momentum has been growing. So far this year, its stock price has risen by over 110% on the European stock market, mainly driven by the strong catalytic effect of the active development pipelines in multiple weight loss drugs.

However, the industry faces fierce competition, with Danish pharmaceutical giant novo-nordisk a/s and eli lilly and co from the USA firmly holding the dominant position in the weight loss drug market, as their so-called 'miracle weight-loss drugs' are crucial to overweight consumer groups globally.

Some authoritative drug regulatory agencies, including those in the USA and the EU, have expanded the labels of GLP-1 drugs to treat obesity-related complications and other diseases, such as diabetes. Concerns still remain about other potential side effects of the drug, such as muscle loss and suicidal thoughts, and US Medicare authorities oppose the high cost of treatment.

However, people's interest in these weight loss treatment drugs continues to grow significantly, with Wall Street analysts estimating that by 2030, the total value of the entire weight loss drug market could reach as high as $200 billion, compared to a market size of less than $10 billion in 2023. The World Obesity Federation (WOF) estimates that by 2035, over 4 billion people (more than half of the world's population) may suffer from obesity to varying degrees.

A forecast report from the Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs shows that by 2030, the annual sales of the global anti-obesity drug market may increase to around $130 billion, higher than the previous expectation of about $100 billion; while the earlier annual sales in 2023, as calculated by Goldman Sachs, were only $6 billion.

Barclays' European pharmaceutical research director, Emily Field, stated that over time, the weight loss drug market may become more 'fragmented,' as pharmaceutical companies target different niche markets, pointing out that treatments against muscle loss could be a good way of 'differentiating' weight loss drugs.

However, she noted that European pharmaceutical companies like Zealand Pharma, in terms of scale and operation, would find it difficult to achieve this alone, and would need to collaborate with larger pharmaceutical companies.

Field said in a phone interview: "Zealand Pharma hasn't even considered manufacturing its own drugs. Many people who own it still have it, but wonder if it will be acquired."

"Excluding speculation about acquisitions," Stensbøl said on Thursday, "this is definitely not part of our plans." However, he pointed out that even though the company raised a substantial $1 billion earlier this year, they would still need some large partners.

"As a potential partner, we have very clear ambitions and hope to continue to the next stage of our business life," Stensbøl said. "We must offer a lot, and I think now for large pharmaceutical companies, choosing to collaborate with Zealand is a very attractive revenue opportunity."

He added that collaboration discussions are ongoing and may continue into the first half of next year.

Zealand Pharma's two crucial trial pipelines, Petrelintide and Dapiglutide, will enter Phase 2 clinical trials for overweight and obese patients in late 2024 and the first half of 2025, respectively.