AstraZeneca has entered an exclusive licensing agreement with Eccogene for ECC5004, a groundbreaking oral glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) designed to address conditions such as obesity, type-2 diabetes, and other cardiometabolic disorders.
Early results from the Phase I trial of ECC5004 have displayed a distinct clinical profile characterized by excellent tolerability and notable reductions in glucose levels and body weight across different dose levels, surpassing the effects of a placebo.
Sharon Barr, Executive Vice President of BioPharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca, emphasized the urgent need for innovative therapies in the face of over one billion individuals grappling with cardiometabolic conditions and obesity. She anticipates that ECC5004 could serve as an alternative to injectable treatments, both as a standalone therapy and in combination with other treatments for diseases like type-2 diabetes and obesity. This development bolsters AstraZeneca’s existing pipeline, which includes medications targeting incretin and non-incretin pathways.
Jingye Zhou, CEO of Eccogene, underlined the significance of GLP-1RAs as a treatment category for various cardiometabolic diseases. Importantly, ECC5004 represents a potentially more convenient and user-friendly option due to its low-dose, orally administered small molecule GLP-1RA structure. The collaboration between Eccogene and AstraZeneca is expected to expedite the development of ECC5004, benefiting millions of patients worldwide dealing with these conditions.
GLP-1RAs have proven effective in managing metabolic diseases like diabetes and obesity, leading to reduced hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels, weight loss, and decreased cardiovascular risk by mimicking the hormone GLP-1.
Under the licensing agreement, Eccogene will receive an initial upfront payment of $185 million, along with the potential for up to $1.825 billion in future payments tied to clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones. Eccogene will also receive tiered royalties based on product net sales.
AstraZeneca gains exclusive global rights for the development and commercialization of ECC5004, except China. In China, Eccogene retains the right to co-develop and co-commercialize ECC5004 alongside AstraZeneca.
ECC5004, currently in Phase I trials in the United States for both healthy participants and type-2 diabetes patients, holds promise as a once-daily, low-dose, small molecule GLP-1RA with demonstrated efficacy and safety profiles in preclinical studies. AstraZeneca’s Cardiovascular, Renal, and Metabolism (CVRM) division, part of BioPharmaceuticals, is actively pursuing advancements in this area to improve and save the lives of millions by understanding the connections between CVRM diseases and developing targeted treatments.
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