What it is
Mazdutide is a once-weekly injectable peptide that activates two receptors: GLP-1 and glucagon. It is an analogue of oxyntomodulin, a gut hormone that naturally acts on both. Innovent Biologics develops and sells it in China under an exclusive licence from Eli Lilly.
It is the first GLP-1 and glucagon dual agonist to reach the market anywhere. China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) approved it on 27 June 2025 for chronic weight management and on 19 September 2025 for glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes. It has no approval outside China.
How it works
The GLP-1 half behaves like semaglutide: it lowers appetite, slows stomach emptying and raises insulin release when glucose is high.
The glucagon half is the reason the drug exists. Glucagon increases energy expenditure and pushes the liver to burn fat. On its own it would raise blood sugar, but the GLP-1 effect offsets that. Innovent describes the combination as adding energy expenditure and better liver fat metabolism to the usual GLP-1 effects. The same logic, with GIP added as a third target, is behind retatrutide. Survodutide from Boehringer Ingelheim is another GLP-1 and glucagon dual agonist, still in development.
What the research found
GLORY-1, obesity
GLORY-1 is the phase 3 trial behind the weight-management approval. It randomised 610 Chinese adults with obesity or overweight to mazdutide 4 mg, mazdutide 6 mg or placebo once weekly for 48 weeks.
| Arm | Weight change, week 32 | Weight change, week 48 | Lost 15% or more at week 48 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 mg | -10.09% | -11.00% | 35.7% |
| 6 mg | -12.55% | -14.01% | 49.5% |
| Placebo | +0.45% | +0.30% | 2.0% |
At week 32, 73.9% of the 4 mg group and 82.0% of the 6 mg group had lost at least 5% of their body weight, against 10.5% on placebo.
Note the population. Chinese regulators define obesity at a BMI of 28 and overweight at 24, lower than the Western cut-offs of 30 and 25. The approved indication follows that: BMI 28 or more, or 24 or more with at least one weight-related condition. The trial was run entirely in China, so its results come from an Asian population but not from Filipinos.
DREAMS-1 and DREAMS-2, type 2 diabetes
The diabetes approval rests on two phase 3 trials. In DREAMS-1, Innovent reported that 87.4% of people on 6 mg reached the HbA1c target, against 10.7% on placebo. DREAMS-2 compared mazdutide with dulaglutide (Trulicity), with 74.2% vs 62.1% reaching target. These figures come from company announcements; check the full papers for detail.
Side effects reported in studies
In GLORY-1 the adverse events were mainly gastrointestinal and mostly mild to moderate. Few people stopped because of them: 1.5% on 4 mg, 0.5% on 6 mg and 1.0% on placebo. Longer-term safety data outside China is not yet available. The side effect management guide covers the GI effects common to this class.
Mazdutide vs tirzepatide and retatrutide
| Compound | Receptors | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Mazdutide | GLP-1, glucagon | Approved in China (2025) |
| Tirzepatide | GLP-1, GIP | Approved in US, sold in PH as Mounjaro |
| Retatrutide | GLP-1, GIP, glucagon | Phase 3, not approved |
| Survodutide | GLP-1, glucagon | In development |
Status in the Philippines
Mazdutide is not registered with FDA Philippines. Its only approval is in China, so any product sold here is either an unregistered import or a research compound. Philippine authorities have moved against unregistered GLP-1 products in 2026, including an NBI arrest in Tondo in May over online tirzepatide sales. Prescribing of registered GLP-1 medicines belongs with a licensed Philippine physician.
Storage
Research vials arrive as a lyophilised powder and are best kept refrigerated. After reconstitution, store at 2 to 8°C and away from the freezer compartment. High heat and brownouts are the main risks in the Philippines; keep a cooler and ice packs ready for outages. The reconstitution calculator handles the arithmetic.
