Ozempic Alternative May Offer Weight Loss Without Injections or Muscle Loss
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A new weight loss pill currently undergoing clinical trials could help burn fat and lower blood sugar levels like Ozempic and similar GLP-1 agonists, but without muscles loss as a potential side-effect.
This is the conclusion of a new study by an international team of researchers led from the biotech firm Atrogi AB.
"This drug represents a completely new type of treatment and has the potential to be of great importance for patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity," said paper author professor Shane Wright of the Karolinska Institutet in a statement.
"Our substance appears to promote health aging weight loss—and, in addition, patients do not have to take injections."
Stock image of weight loss pills.
Stock image of weight loss pills.
celsopupo/iStock / Getty Images Plus
GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic work, in part, by altering gut-brain signals to decrease hunger; however, their side effects can include a loss in muscle mass.
The new drug, in contrast, is a type of so-called "β2 agonist" which works by activating signaling pathways in the body in such a way that has a positive effect on muscles. Unlike existing β2 agonists, however, it does not have the drawback of overstimulating the heart.
In mice models of diabetes and rat models of obesity, the drug has demonstrated benefits for both body composition and blood sugar control.
"Our results point to a future where we can improve metabolic health without losing muscle mass," said paper co-author and Stockholm University molecular biologist professor Tore Bengtsson in a statement.
"Muscles are important in both type 2 diabetes and obesity—and muscle mass is also directly correlated with life expectancy."
While the effectiveness of the new treatment has yet to be evaluated in humans, a phase I clinical trial (which involved 48 healthy subjects and 25 people with type 2 diabetes) has shown that the drug is well-tolerated in humans.
A further advantage of the new drug, the team explained, is that because it has a different mechanism of action to Ozempic and other GLP-1 agonists, they could be taken together.
"This makes them valuable both as a stand-alone treatment and in combination with GLP-1 drugs," explained Wright.
With this initial study complete, researchers are now looking to undertake a larger clinical study to see if the drug offers the same benefits to humans with type 2 diabetes or obesity as it did in the mice models of these conditions.
Do you have a tip on a health story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about weight loss medication? Let us know via health@newsweek.com.
Reference
Motso, A., Pelcman, B., Kalinovich, A., Kahlous, N. A., Bokhari, M. H., Dehvari, N., Halleskog, C., Waara, E., de Jong, J., Cheesman, E., Kallenberg, C., Yakala, G. K., Murad, P., Wetterdal, E., Andersson, P., van Beek, S., Sandström, A., Alleluia, D. N., Talamonti, E., Youhanna, S., Sabatier, P., Koenig, C., Willems, S., Kemas, A. M., Hutchinson, D. S., Ham, S., Grätz, L., Voss, J., Marchan-Alvarez, J. G., Priede, M., Jaunsleine, K., Spura, J., Kovada, V., Supe, L., Stoddart, L. A., Holliday, N. D., Newton, P. T., Pillon, N. J., Schulte, G., Summers, R. J., Mutule, I., Suna, E., Olsen, J. V., Molenaar, P., Carlsson, J., Lauschke, V. M., Wright, S. C., & Bengtsson, T. (2025). GRK-biased adrenergic agonists for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity. Cell. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2025.05.042
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