A new startup called Helicore Biopharma launched today with a focus on developing obesity drugs that block the GIP hormone, an approach similar to that of Amgen’s experimental treatment MariTide.
The biotech raised $65 million in a Series A round, led by Versant Ventures and OrbiMed, and with participation from Longitude Capital and Wellington Management.
Helicore plans to start Phase 1 testing of its lead asset, a monoclonal antibody designed to bind to GIP, in the first quarter. The company is aiming for the treatment be dosed less frequently than currently available drugs, possibly monthly or even quarterly, CEO Gerrit Klaerner said in an interview. And unlike other GIP antagonists, Helicore’s drug does not bind to GIP receptors, but instead binds to circulating GIP ligands, an approach that the Klaerner said will more effectively block the effects of GIP.
The company also plans to combine its GIP antibody with peptides that target other hormones, such as GLP-1.
There’s been debate about whether obesity drugs should activate or block GIP. There are genetic data suggesting that loss of function of the GIP receptor is associated with lower body weight, but at the same time, drugs such as Eli Lilly’s Zepbound — which activates both GLP-1 and GIP — have been shown to lead to substantial weight loss.
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As RFK Jr. faces confirmation hearings this week on his nomination to lead HHS, my D.C. colleagues closely analyzed his plans for regulating vaccines.
Though RFK Jr. has insisted that he doesn’t want to take away vaccines and rather just wants to make sure they’re safe, he has already sketched out a blueprint that could subject recommended vaccines to renewed scrutiny, redirect research, strip legal protections for vaccine makers, and change how vaccines are advertised.
This analysis offers a window into how RFK Jr. could use the levers of power as the top U.S. health official to sow doubt about vaccines at a time when rates of childhood immunizations are already slipping.
Read more from STAT’s Rachel Cohrs Zhang and Sarah Owermohle.
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