A small clinical trial revealed that a weight-loss drug from the GLP-1 receptor agonist class slowed brain volume loss in people with mild Alzheimer’s disease.
The trial results, presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, offered initial insights into how GLP-1 drugs might affect difficult-to-treat brain disorders.
The study involved 204 patients in Britain, with half receiving Novo Nordisk's (NYSE:NVO) GLP-1 drug liraglutide and the other half a placebo.
Although the trial did not achieve its primary goal of changing the cerebral glucose metabolic rate, it met secondary goals by showing that liraglutide reduced brain shrinkage in areas related to memory, learning, language, and decision-making by nearly 50% compared to the placebo.
Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) did not sponsor the trial, but the company is testing its newer GLP-1 drug semaglutide, known as Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for obesity, in patients with early Alzheimer’s, with results expected in 2025.