Acmopatide met the main goal of a Phase 2 study in type 1 diabetes, but Roche is axing the investigational drug to prioritize enicepatide for weight loss, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular outcomes. Both assets come from the $2.7 billion buy of Carmot Therapeutics.
Roche has discontinued the development of an investigational obesity treatment from its $2.7 billion acquisition of Carmot Therapeutics. Meanwhile, another Carmot candidate is emerging as a potential leader in the weight loss field.
Roche will no longer invest in the development of acmopatide, previously known as CT-868, the pharma revealed in an investor presentation on Tuesday alongside its second quarter earnings report. The move comes “as other T1D [type 1 diabetes] development program get prioritized,” according to the presentation.
Acmopatide was being developed for T1D with obesity. The asset improved glucose control as measured by blood A1C levels, as per a Phase 2 readout presented last month at the annual conference of the American Diabetes Association. At a 4.1-mg dose level, A1C dropped by 0.34% from baseline, with 56% of patients meeting the recommended A1C target of under 7%. The study used placebo as a control.
During a press call Thursday morning, CEO Thomas Schinecker conceded that acmopatide “met all the requirements.” But he pointed to lead Carmot asset CT-388, now known as enicepatide, as the more promising candidate to move forward. “We can use one molecule for several indications, which makes more sense,” he said through a language interpreter.
Enicepatide, a dual agonist of the GLP-1 and GIP receptors, is Roche’s main bounty from the Carmot takeover. Phase 2 data for the drug showed weight reduction reaching up to 22.5% versus placebo, positioning the asset to potentially have best-in-class weight loss potential, the pharma said Thursday.
“Clearly,” Teresa Graham, CEO of Roche’s Pharmaceuticals division, said during the press call, showing a graph of enicepatide’s weight loss effects over 48 weeks, “the 24-mg dose did not reach a weight loss plateau, and therefore we see the potential for additional weight loss with longer treatment duration.”
The pharma also did not detect “a tolerability ceiling” at the highest dose of enicepatide, Graham added.
Roche has a broad Phase 3 program planned for enicepatide, including studies for weight loss, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular outcomes—but not for T1D, as per its company presentation. A regulatory submission for obesity could come as early as 2028.
The company’s obesity portfolio also includes the Zealand Pharma–partnered amylin asset petrelintide, which last month underwhelmed investors with a 9% reduction in weight at 42 weeks In the Phase 2 ZUPREME-1 trial. Roche is looking ahead to another mid-stage readout later this year and to push the candidate into late-stage development.
Roche on Thursday announced the discontinuation of other assets, including a bispecific antibody for systemic lupus erythematosus and a mid-stage asset that had been under development for diabetic macular edema.
