Bootleg Retatrutide Deaths? PMOS and Dementia; Weight-Loss Drug to Be Discontinued

Two recent deaths tied to counterfeit versions of retatrutide, an investigational weight-loss medication, were reported to the FDA. (CBS News)

Meanwhile, ongoing lawsuits allege that GLP-1 receptor agonists can cause severe adverse events. (NPR)

The World Health Organization announced its first obesity guidelines for children and adolescents, recommending against using weight-loss drugs or bariatric surgery in patients younger than 10 years of age.

Zealand Pharma said its investigational amylin analog petrelintide led to an average weight reduction of up to 9.2% at 28 weeks and with low discontinuation rates, compared with a 2% weight reduction with placebo, in a phase II trial of adults with overweight/obesity and type 2 diabetes.

After the approval of oral semaglutide (Wegovy) for weight management, new prescriptions surpassed 100,000 within just 2 months. (Annals of Internal Medicine)

Novo Nordisk announced plans to discontinue its GLP-1 weight-loss injectable liraglutide (Saxenda) in early 2027 due to declining sales.

Exploratory phase IIIb trial data showed favorable biomarker changes and reduced inflammatory immune activity with tirzepatide (Zepbound) and ixekizumab (Taltz) in adults with obesity and moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, said Eli Lilly.

Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease may be more common in women with polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), formerly known as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), an association likely driven by metabolic comorbidities. (Journal of the Endocrine Society)

The investigational enzyme replacement therapy efzimfotase alfa failed to hit its primary endpoint of improvement in the 6-Minute Walk Test in a phase III trial of treatment-naive patients with hypophosphatasia, according to maker AstraZeneca.

Applying the 2025 American Thyroid Association thyroglobulin threshold increased “excellent response” classifications without missing recurrences in low-risk patients with differentiated thyroid cancer after total thyroidectomy. (Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism)

The FDA granted fast track designation to SAB Biotherapeutics’ fully human anti-thymocyte immunoglobulin designed to treat new-onset stage 3 type 1 diabetes, the company announced.

Insulet introduced a web-based analytics platform offering personalized insights for Omnipod 5 users.

A low-fat plant-based diet was associated with improved liver fat content, insulin sensitivity, and beta-cell function in adults with type 2 diabetes in a single-arm trial. (BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care)

From 2017 to 2023, presentation rates for nonbinary youth increased 2.7-fold compared with binary transgender youth at an Australian pediatric gender clinic. (JAMA Pediatrics)