– Combination of a low dose of ASC47 with ASC31, a novel peptide agonist targeting both GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) and GIP receptor (GIPR), resulted in a 44.8% reduction in body weight after 14 days of treatment in a diet-induced obese (DIO) mouse model.
– Combination of a low dose of ASC47 with ASC31 demonstrated statistically significantly greater efficacy than a combination of a low dose of ASC47 with tirzepatide, 44.8% compared to 38.1%, respectively, in the DIO mouse model.
HONG KONG, Aug. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Ascletis Pharma Inc. (HKEX:1672, "Ascletis") announces encouraging preclinical efficacy results for ASC47, a first-in-class muscle-preserving weight loss drug candidate for the treatment of obesity, in combination with ASC31, its in-house developed GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R)/GIP receptor (GIPR) dual targeting peptide agonist drug candidate.
ASC31 is an in-house discovered and developed novel peptide agonist targeting both GLP-1R and GIPR, which demonstrated a favorable pharmacokinetic profile in non-human primates as well as promising in vitro activities and in vivo efficacy in the diet-induced obese (DIO) mice. ASC31 is part of Ascletis’ discovery efforts to apply its Ultra-Long-Acting Platform (ULAP) to in-house discovered novel subcutaneously (SQ) injectable peptides and oral peptides.
ASC47 is an adipose-targeted, once-monthly SQ injected thyroid hormone receptor beta (THRβ) selective small molecule agonist, discovered and developed in-house at Ascletis. ASC47 possesses unique and differentiated properties to enable adipose targeting, resulting in dose-dependent high drug concentrations in the adipose tissue.
The objective of the DIO mouse study was to compare efficacy in weight loss of a low dose of ASC47 (9 mg/kg, SQ) combined with ASC31 (3 nmol/kg, SQ) to a low dose of ASC47 (9 mg/kg, SQ) combined with tirzepatide (3 nmol/kg, SQ). The treatment duration was 14 days. Results showed that the combination of ASC47 with ASC31 was 17.6% more effective (p=0.02) compared to the combination of ASC47 with tirzepatide, with an average total body weight reduction of 44.8% versus 38.1%, respectively.
"The significant weight reduction demonstrated with the combination of our novel GLP-1R/GIPR peptide agonist, ASC31, and our THRβ agonist, ASC47, in this animal model suggests the potential for meaningful differentiation compared to currently marketed obesity treatments as well as product candidates in development," said Jinzi Jason Wu, Ph.D., Founder, Chairman and CEO of Ascletis, "Ascletis is developing a strong pipeline of small molecules and peptides for the potential treatment of obesity, and we look forward to providing additional development updates moving forward."
About Ascletis Pharma Inc.
Ascletis Pharma Inc. is a fully integrated biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of potential best-in-class and first-in-class therapeutics to treat metabolic diseases. Utilizing its proprietary Artificial Intelligence-Assisted Structure-Based Drug Discovery (AISBDD) Platform and Ultra-Long-Acting Platform (ULAP), Ascletis has developed multiple drug candidates in-house, including its lead program, ASC30, a small molecule GLP-1R agonist in development as a once-daily oral tablet and once-monthly subcutaneous injection for weight management. Ascletis is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (1672.HK).
For more information, please visit www.ascletis.com.
Contact：
Peter VozzoICR Healthcare443-231-0505 (U.S.)Peter.vozzo@icrhealthcare.com
Ascletis Pharma Inc. PR and IR teams+86-181-0650-9129 (China)pr@ascletis.comir@ascletis.com
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