Key Takeaways
- Corbus Pharmaceuticals’ CB1 inverse agonist CRB-913 shows potential for fewer neuropsychiatric side effects compared to competitors.
- Phase 1b trial results display promising weight loss efficacy without significant plateauing.
- Adverse event rates for CRB-913 are lower than those seen in the phase 2a trial of Novo Nordisk’s monlunabant.
Positive Data from Phase 1b Trial
Corbus Pharmaceuticals has reported encouraging findings from its phase 1b trial for CB1 inverse agonist CRB-913, indicating it may be less likely to cause neuropsychiatric side effects compared to drugs from rivals like Novo Nordisk and Sanofi. This news comes as Corbus positions itself favorably in the competitive landscape of obesity medications, especially after Novo’s recent setbacks with its monlunabant drug, which faced criticism due to negative neuropsychiatric outcomes.
Sanofi’s CB1 receptor blocker, Acomplia, received European approval in 2006 but was pulled from the market three years later due to its association with a higher risk of psychiatric disorders. In contrast, the recent buyout of Inversago Pharma by Novo Nordisk, valued at up to $1.1 billion, illustrates the renewed interest in CB1 mechanisms. However, with the announcement of adverse effects linked to monlunabant’s trials, the field has been left open for other candidates.
During a June Jefferies event, Corbus CEO Yuval Cohen, Ph.D., expressed optimism about CRB-913, stating the primary concern was whether it would show a safety profile superior to monlunabant. The results revealed that CRB-913 had notably lower instances of depression, anxiety, irritability, and insomnia, with adverse event rates on the highest dosage varying from 0% to 9.7%. A comparison was made against placebo and GLP-1 receptor agonists, showing CRB-913’s psychiatric event occurrences are minimal.
In terms of efficacy, Corbus reported a placebo-adjusted weight loss of up to 5% by Week 12, paralleling Novo’s earlier phase 2a results, and significantly surpassing Acomplia’s performance. The data suggested that CRB-913 did not exhibit signs of weight loss plateauing by Week 12, hinting that long-term trials may yield even greater results.
While there is little evidence that CRB-913 can dramatically surpass the effectiveness of Novo’s oral Wegovy, it presents as a more tolerable option. Adverse event rates such as vomiting, nausea, and constipation are favorable compared to those associated with existing oral obesity medications. Notably, however, there was a higher incidence of diarrhea reported in patients administered CRB-913 compared to other treatments.
Overall, the phase 1b trial indicates that Corbus Pharmaceuticals is making strides in developing a potentially safer and effective obesity treatment, setting the stage for further exploration as the competition continues to unfold in this critical area of pharmaceutical innovation.
The content above is a summary. For more details, see the source article.