Oral Wegovy Hits Shelves & The Maintenance Question
Week Of January 3 – January 9, 2026
Before we get to this week’s developments, one exciting announcement:
GLP-1 Tracker Dashboard
I’ve been building something alongside this newsletter and wanted to share it: a dashboard that tracks the GLP-1 clinical trial landscape in one place. It continuously monitors ClinicalTrials.gov to surface what actually changes day-to-day – from emerging mechanisms and new trial results to quiet timeline delays that don’t make the press releases.
You can explore the live dashboard for free here: glp1.bio1up.com
It’s designed to give you the picture quickly. I’ve also included a Plus tier for those who need deeper views, including upcoming readout tracking and export capabilities. I’d love to hear how it fits into your workflow. What do you want to track?
This week, following last week's FDA approval, Novo Nordisk was quick in getting oral Wegovy into the market with a notable $149/month self-pay option for the starting dose, including at Costco and CVS. The speed of rollout and aggressive pricing suggest they’re aiming to capture patients who’ve been hesitant about injections. That said, the strict dosing requirements (empty stomach, 4 oz water, 30-minute wait) are a potential hurdle. Meanwhile, Viking completed enrollment in a maintenance dosing study exploring whether monthly subcutaneous or weekly/daily oral regimens can sustain weight loss after an initial treatment period. It’s an important question, especially as more people hit their goal weights.
For the Trial Spotlight, I picked a DDI (drug-drug interaction) study for HDM1002, an oral small molecule GLP-1 from Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong. These interaction studies aren’t flashy, but they’re essential. Patients on GLP-1s typically take metformin, blood pressure meds, and anticoagulants, so characterizing these interactions is a prerequisite for later phases. The Mechanism Explained section covers triple agonism (GLP-1/GIP/glucagon). Retatrutide’s approach of adding glucagon to the mix represents one of the more ambitious attempts to push beyond the efficacy ceiling of current dual agonists.
🔥 THIS WEEK’S KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Novo Nordisk launches oral Wegovy for weight loss in the US.
Novo Nordisk announced its Wegovy® (semaglutide) pill, the first oral GLP-1 for weight loss, is now broadly available in the US. In the OASIS 4 trial, the 25 mg dose demonstrated an average weight loss of ~17% (trial product estimand) and ~14% (treatment policy estimand) at 64 weeks. The company is offering the starting dose for $149 per month via a self-pay offer.
Press | Trials: NCT05564117 | Mechanism: oral GLP-1
Viking completes enrollment for VK2735 obesity maintenance study.
Viking Therapeutics announced it has completed enrollment in its Phase 1 exploratory maintenance dosing study of VK2735, its dual GLP-1/GIP agonist, in approximately 180 adults with obesity. The trial is evaluating the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of various maintenance regimens, including monthly subcutaneous, weekly oral, and daily oral dosing, following an initial 19-week treatment period. Exploratory endpoints will assess change in body weight through Week 31, with results expected later in the year.
Press | Mechanism: GLP-1 / GIP dual agonist (oral and subcutaneous)
Zepbound plus Taltz shows positive Phase 3 results in psoriatic arthritis.
Eli Lilly announced its Phase 3b TOGETHER-PsA trial of Taltz (ixekizumab) and Zepbound (tirzepatide) met its primary endpoint at 36 weeks in adults with active psoriatic arthritis and obesity. In the study, 31.7% of patients on the combination therapy achieved ACR50 plus at least 10% weight reduction, compared to 0.8% of patients on Taltz monotherapy (p<.001). The trial also met a key secondary endpoint, with 33.5% of patients on the combination achieving ACR50 versus 20.4% for Taltz alone (p<.05).
Press | Trials: NCT06588296 | Mechanism: GLP-1 / GIP dual agonist
📰 PRESS RELEASES
Pemvidutide receives FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation for MASH.
Press | Press | NCT05989711 | Mechanism: glucagon/GLP-1 dual receptor agonist
🆕 NEWLY REGISTERED TRIALS (7 in last week)
HDM1002 Phase 1 study investigating drug-drug interactions with five common medications including metformin and warfarin (Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., n=111)
[Weight Loss/Efficacy | Oral Formulations]
Trials: NCT07331389 | Mechanism: GLP-1 receptor agonist (oral)
TQF3250 Phase 1 first-in-human trial assessing the safety and tolerability of the new compound in healthy adult volunteers (Chia Tai Tianqing, n=66)
[Oral Formulations]
Trials: NCT07327281 | Mechanism: GLP-1 receptor agonist (oral)
Tirzepatide Phase 4 investigating effects on reproductive function and metabolic health in women with PCOS (University of Bonn, n=198)
[Weight Loss/Efficacy | New Indications]
Trials: NCT07326111 (PERIODS) | Mechanism: Dual GLP-1/GIP agonist
Incretin Microdosing Phase 2 trial evaluating if low doses can improve cardiometabolic health in people with HIV (UT Health Science Center, Houston, n=30)
[Weight Loss/Efficacy | New Indications]
Trials: NCT07325500 (REINFORCE) | Mechanism: GLP-1 receptor agonist
Comparing the effects of semaglutide vs. tirzepatide, both combined with exercise, in adults with obesity (Istanbul Galata University, n=48)
[Weight Loss/Efficacy]
Trials: NCT07319975 | Mechanism: Dual GLP-1/GIP agonist
GLP-1 Receptor Agonists Phase 1 trial investigating their role in menstrual irregularities in adolescent females with Type 1 Diabetes (Ain Shams University, n=50)
[New Indications]
Trials: NCT07319286 | Mechanism: GLP-1 receptor agonist
A head-to-head trial comparing a novel surgical procedure, side-to-side duodeno-ileostomy, to semaglutide in adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes (GT Metabolic Solutions, n=20)
[Weight Loss/Efficacy]
Trials: NCT07317115 (MAGvMED) | Mechanism: GLP-1 receptor agonist
💡 TRIAL SPOTLIGHT
Educational spotlight selected by editors
A Drug-Drug Interaction Study of HDM1002 and Metformin, Empagliflozin, Midazolam, Valsartan, and Warfarin
This Phase 1 trial evaluates HDM1002, an investigational oral small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist developed by Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical, for potential drug-drug interactions. Unlike approved peptide-based GLP-1 therapies (such as semaglutide) that typically require injection, HDM1002 is a small molecule designed for oral administration, positioning it in a highly competitive class of next-generation metabolic treatments. The study enrolls 111 participants to determine if HDM1002 alters the pharmacokinetics of five specific co-administered agents: metformin, empagliflozin, valsartan, warfarin, and the metabolic probe midazolam. Verifying these interactions is a critical safety milestone, as the target patient population—those with obesity or Type 2 diabetes—frequently manages comorbidities with these exact maintenance medications. Successful characterization of this safety profile is a necessary step to advance HDM1002 into larger, late-stage global efficacy trials.
🔬 MECHANISM EXPLAINED
Understanding the science behind the therapeutics
Triple GLP-1/GIP/glucagon agonist (Example drug: Retatrutide)
Retatrutide is a unimolecular peptide that simultaneously activates receptors for GLP-1, GIP, and glucagon (GCGR), effectively hitting three distinct metabolic levers in a single therapeutic. While the GLP-1 and GIP components drive satiety and improve insulin sensitivity—building on the foundation laid by dual agonists like tirzepatide—the addition of GCGR agonism acts as a metabolic accelerator by increasing energy expenditure and promoting hepatic lipolysis. This mechanism is critical because it aims to breach the efficacy ceiling of current incretin therapies, offering the potential for bariatric-surgery-level weight loss through combined appetite suppression and increased calorie burning. Furthermore, the glucagon component’s direct impact on liver fat mobilization uniquely positions triple agonists as leading contenders in the high-stakes race to treat metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
This newsletter compiles publicly available information from company press releases and ClinicalTrials.gov. Not investment advice.
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