Mazdutide 9 mg produces 18.55% mean weight loss at 60 weeks in Chinese Phase 3 trial
A dual GLP-1/glucagon drug hit roughly 19% average weight loss in a Chinese trial, but it is not approved in the US and head-to-head results against semaglutide have not been disclosed.
Mazdutide 9 mg helped Chinese adults with obesity lose a mean 18.55% of their body weight over 60 weeks, compared with 3.02% for placebo, Innovent Biologics said on Nov. 19, 2025 [1]. The Phase 3 study, called GLORY-2, met its primary endpoint and all key secondary endpoints, according to the company [1].
GLORY-2 (NCT06164873) enrolled 462 Chinese adults with obesity, defined as a body mass index of 30 kg/m² or higher, and randomized them 2:1 to mazdutide 9 mg plus lifestyle intervention or placebo for a 60-week double-blind treatment period [1]. Mean starting weight was 94.0 kg and mean starting BMI was 34.3 kg/m²; 16% of participants had type 2 diabetes [1].
At week 60, 44.0% of people in the mazdutide group had lost at least 20% of their body weight, compared with 2.6% in the placebo group [1]. Among participants without type 2 diabetes, the mean weight reduction was 20.08%, versus 2.81% on placebo, and 48.7% lost at least 20%, versus 3.1% (P<0.0001 for those comparisons) [1]. Innovent said weight loss in the mazdutide group was still continuing at week 60, with no plateau observed [1].
Secondary endpoints also favored mazdutide, including waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, triglycerides, non-HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and serum uric acid [1]. In a subset of participants without type 2 diabetes who started with liver fat of 10% or more, measured by MRI-PDFF, liver fat fell a mean 71.9% in the mazdutide group, compared with a 5.1% increase on placebo [1].
Innovent said mazdutide 9 mg showed no new safety signals, and that most gastrointestinal side effects were mild to moderate and went away [1]. Discontinuation because of adverse events was 2.9% in the mazdutide group and 0% on placebo [1].
The company also points to a separate Phase 3 study, DREAMS-3 (NCT06184568), that compares mazdutide with semaglutide in Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes and obesity [1][2]. Innovent lists DREAMS-3 among five of its seven Phase 3 mazdutide studies that have met their primary endpoints; the head-to-head weight and blood sugar results have not been disclosed [1]. Another trial, GLORY-3, is testing mazdutide against semaglutide 2.4 mg in Chinese adults with overweight or obesity and metabolic-associated fatty liver disease and is still ongoing [1].
Mazdutide is a dual glucagon (GCG) and GLP-1 receptor agonist licensed by Innovent from Eli Lilly for development in China [1]. It is a different molecule from semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound).
Why it matters for patients
The weight-loss numbers reported here are in the range seen with other injectable GLP-1 drugs, but they come from a trial run entirely in Chinese adults, and results in US populations have not been reported [1]. Mazdutide is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, and whether Innovent plans US trials or a US filing has not been disclosed [1].
The liver fat and blood pressure findings were secondary endpoints, not proof that the drug prevents heart attacks, strokes or liver disease progression [1]. How mazdutide compares directly with semaglutide on weight or blood sugar is not yet known from the data released so far [1].
Mazdutide already holds two approvals from China's National Medical Products Administration: chronic weight management for adults with a BMI of 28 kg/m² or higher, or 24 kg/m² or higher with at least one related condition such as high blood pressure or fatty liver, and blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes [1]. Those approvals use different BMI thresholds than US labels for other GLP-1 obesity drugs.
What happens next
Innovent said it plans to submit a new drug application for mazdutide 9 mg for weight management to the Center for Drug Evaluation of China's National Medical Products Administration "in the near term" [1]. No submission date was given. The company said mazdutide 9 mg is the only GLP-1 receptor agonist to reach more than 20% weight loss in obese adults without type 2 diabetes after a year using a two-step dose titration, a company characterization rather than an independent finding [1]. Two of its seven Phase 3 mazdutide studies, GLORY-3 and GLORY-OSA, are still running, and separate studies in adolescents with obesity, MASH and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction are ongoing [1]. Full peer-reviewed publication of the GLORY-2 results and any US development plans have not been announced [1].
Sources
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