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Evidence: HighPeptideNot FDA ApprovedGLP-1 and glucagon dual agonistApproved in ChinaNot approved in the US

Mazdutide

The first dual glucagon and GLP-1 agonist approved for weight loss anywhere, by China's regulator in June 2025

Mazdutide activates the GLP-1 receptor, like semaglutide, and the glucagon receptor, which raises energy use and burns liver fat. Licensed from Eli Lilly to Innovent for China, it was approved there in June 2025 on the strength of GLORY-1, where 6 mg cut weight 14% at 32 weeks.

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Overview

What is it?

GLP-1 drugs reduce appetite. Glucagon, usually thought of as the hormone that raises blood sugar, also increases energy expenditure and breaks down fat in the liver. Mazdutide pairs the two in one weekly peptide, and the GLP-1 action holds blood sugar down while the glucagon action adds its effects on energy and liver fat.

China's regulator approved it on June 27, 2025 for chronic weight management in adults with overweight or obesity, the first dual glucagon and GLP-1 agonist approved for weight loss anywhere, mainly on GLORY-1. In that 32-week trial, weight fell 11.0% on 4 mg and 14.0% on 6 mg against a 0.3% gain on placebo, and 49.5% on 6 mg lost at least 15%.

Higher doses push further. In a phase 2 trial, 9 mg lowered weight 12.8% in 24 weeks; GLORY-2 then reported 16.7% at 60 weeks on 9 mg. A small phase 1 study escalated to 16 mg and saw losses of about 20% in 20 weeks. The price at every dose is gastrointestinal: on 9 mg, half had nausea and over a third vomited.

In type 2 diabetes it has been tested against placebo and against dulaglutide. In DREAMS-1, 6 mg lowered HbA1c by 2.15 points in 24 weeks in people on no other drugs; over 28 weeks, 4 and 6 mg lowered HbA1c and weight more than dulaglutide 1.5 mg, with weight differences of 3.8 and 5.8 points, at the cost of more gastrointestinal side effects. Innovent said at approval that a diabetes application was under review in China.

Pooled across nine trials, mostly in Chinese adults, mazdutide also improved lipids, liver enzymes and uric acid. Lilly holds the rights outside China, and the drug is not approved in the US; a US phase 2 trial reported weight losses of up to 18.1%.

14.0%
Weight loss on 6 mg at 32 weeks
GLORY-1, placebo +0.3%
16.7%
Weight loss on 9 mg at 60 weeks
GLORY-2
-2.15
HbA1c points on 6 mg at 24 weeks
DREAMS-1
Science

Mechanism of Action

Mazdutide is a once-weekly peptide that activates both the GLP-1 receptor and the glucagon receptor.

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GLP-1 receptor

Reduces appetite and lowers blood sugar, as GLP-1 drugs do; decreased appetite was among the commonest effects in trials.

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Glucagon receptor

Glucagon raises energy expenditure and breaks down liver fat; the GLP-1 action offsets its tendency to raise glucose.

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Broader metabolic effects

Across nine trials it also improved waist circumference, lipids, liver enzymes and uric acid.

Evidence

Published Research

These are the trials that describe mazdutide, read from their PubMed abstracts: GLORY-1, a phase 2 obesity trial, a phase 2 diabetes trial and a head-to-head against dulaglutide.

Human2025

GLORY-1, the approval trial

Chinese adults with overweight or obesity took weekly 4 or 6 mg or placebo for 32 weeks. Weight fell 11.0% and 14.0% against a 0.3% gain; 35.7% and 49.5% lost at least 15%, against 2.0%. Side effects were mostly mild gastrointestinal.

PMID: 40421736
Human2023

Phase 2 in obesity

248 adults took 3, 4.5 or 6 mg weekly or placebo for 24 weeks at 20 hospitals. Weight fell 6.7%, 10.4% and 11.3% against a 1.0% gain on placebo, with diarrhoea, nausea and upper respiratory infection the commonest side effects.

PMID: 38092790
Human2024

Phase 2 in type 2 diabetes

Over 20 weeks HbA1c fell 1.41 to 1.67 points on mazdutide against 1.35 on dulaglutide and none on placebo, and weight fell up to 7.1% against 2.7%. Diarrhoea affected 36% and nausea 23%.

PMID: 37943529
Human2026

Against dulaglutide

In Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes, 28 weeks of 4 or 6 mg lowered HbA1c and weight more than dulaglutide 1.5 mg, with weight differences of 3.78 and 5.76 points, and more gastrointestinal side effects.

PMID: 41407860
Human2026

GLORY-2: 9 mg for 60 weeks

In 461 Chinese adults with obesity, 9 mg mazdutide reduced body weight by 16.7% at 60 weeks against 1.5% on placebo; 84.3% lost at least 5%.

PMID: 42251595
Human2026

US phase 2

In 179 US adults with obesity or overweight, 32 weeks of mazdutide reduced weight by 7.3%, 15.6% and 18.1% at 3-6, 10 and 16 mg against 0.9% on placebo, with further loss by 48 weeks.

PMID: 42628555
Human2026

DREAMS-1: diabetes, no other drugs

In 320 Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes on diet and exercise alone, HbA1c fell 1.57 and 2.15 points on 4 and 6 mg at 24 weeks against 0.14 on placebo, and weight fell 5.6% and 7.8% against 1.3%.

PMID: 41407859
Human2026

9 mg without diabetes: phase 2

In 80 Chinese adults with a BMI of 30 or more, 9 mg lowered weight 12.8% at 24 weeks against a 1.8% gain on placebo; nausea (50%), diarrhoea (38%) and vomiting (37%) were common, mostly mild to moderate.

PMID: 41875890
Human2025

Up to 16 mg: phase 1

In 32 adults with overweight or obesity, two escalation schemes to 16 mg lowered weight 20.0% and 21.0% in 20 weeks against 0.1% on placebo, with no serious adverse events.

PMID: 40832785
Human2022

9 and 10 mg: first look

In 24 Chinese adults, 12 weeks of 9 mg lowered weight 11.7% against 1.8% on placebo; adverse events were mild or moderate.

PMID: 36247927
Human2022

Phase 1b in type 2 diabetes

In Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes, IBI362 was well tolerated; diarrhoea (29%), decreased appetite (25%) and nausea (17%) were about as common as on dulaglutide, and glucose fell.

PMID: 35750681
Human2021

First trial in obesity

In 36 Chinese adults over 12 weeks, 3, 4.5 and 6 mg cut weight by 4.8% to 6.4% against a 0.6% gain on placebo; three had mild, asymptomatic ECG changes.

PMID: 34430840
Review2026

Meta-analysis of nine trials

Across nine trials and 2,292 participants, mostly Chinese, mazdutide lowered weight in a dose-dependent way, outperformed dulaglutide in type 2 diabetes, and improved lipids, liver enzymes and uric acid, with more gastrointestinal events but similar discontinuation.

PMID: 42410325
Dosing

Dosing Data

In China it is a once-weekly injection under the skin; approval trials used 4 and 6 mg, and later trials 9 mg.

Approved only in China; investigational in the US. Doses below come from trials. Gastrointestinal side effects are common.
ProtocolDoseFrequencyDurationRoute
Trial: obesity or overweight (GLORY-1, basis of the Chinese approval) Human studyPMID 404217364 or 6 mgOnce weekly32 weeksSubcutaneous
Trial: obesity, higher dose (GLORY-2) Human studyPMID 422515959 mgOnce weekly60 weeksSubcutaneous
Trial: type 2 diabetes on diet and exercise (DREAMS-1) Human studyPMID 414078594 or 6 mgOnce weekly24 weeks, then extensionSubcutaneous

Educational information, not medical advice. Each dose above is tagged with its source: an approved label, a published human study, animal data, or amounts reported by users. None is a recommendation for you. An unapproved compound has no established safe or effective human dose, and products sold for “research use only” are not made or tested for people. Talk to a doctor before acting on anything on this site, including before you start, stop or change any medicine or dose. Full medical disclaimer.

Fixed doses
Mazdutide is given in fixed milligram doses with escalation; there is nothing to calculate per kilogram.
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Safety

Side Effects & Contraindications

Reported Side Effects

From the trials above.

● Diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting, the commonest effects, mostly mild to moderate
● Decreased appetite, part of how it works
● Hypoglycaemia in diabetes trials, 10% against 8% on placebo in phase 2
● More gastrointestinal effects than dulaglutide

Contraindications & Cautions

Prescription-only in China; not approved in the US.

● Anyone in the US outside a trial — it is not approved there
● Anyone buying it as a research chemical
● Tested athletes — see the Sport (WADA) row below
Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

?What is mazdutide?

A weekly injectable peptide that activates both the GLP-1 and glucagon receptors, approved in China for weight management.

?How much weight did people lose?

In GLORY-1, 14.0% on 6 mg and 11.0% on 4 mg at 32 weeks, against a 0.3% gain on placebo.

?Is it approved in the US?

No. It was approved in China in June 2025; Eli Lilly holds the rights elsewhere.

?How is it different from tirzepatide?

Tirzepatide pairs GLP-1 with GIP. Mazdutide pairs GLP-1 with glucagon, which also raises energy use and burns liver fat.

Bibliography

References

  1. [pubmed] Ji L, et al. "Once-Weekly Mazdutide in Chinese Adults with Obesity or Overweight." N Engl J Med, 2025;392(22):2215-2225. PMID: 40421736.
  2. [pubmed] Ji L, et al. "A phase 2 randomised controlled trial of mazdutide in Chinese overweight adults or adults with obesity." Nat Commun, 2023;14(1):8289. PMID: 38092790.
  3. [pubmed] Zhang B, et al. "Efficacy and Safety of Mazdutide in Chinese Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase 2 Trial." Diabetes Care, 2024;47(1):160-168. PMID: 37943529.
  4. [pubmed] Guo L, et al. "Mazdutide versus dulaglutide in Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes." Nature, 2026;652(8108):181-188. PMID: 41407860.
  5. [other] Innovent Biologics, announcement of NMPA approval of mazdutide for chronic weight management in Chinese adults with overweight or obesity, June 30, 2025; read September 30, 2026.
  6. [clinicaltrials] ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05607680: GLORY-1, IBI362 (mazdutide) in participants with obesity or overweight (registry record and the trial's NEJM report, read September 30, 2026).
  7. [clinical-trial] Gao L, et al. "Treatment With 9-mg Mazdutide for Weight Reduction in Chinese Adults With Obesity: The GLORY-2 Randomized Clinical Trial." JAMA, 2026;336(5):377-388. PMID: 42251595.
  8. [clinical-trial] Hsia SH, et al. "Efficacy and safety of mazdutide in adults with obesity or overweight: a US-based, multicentre, phase 2, randomised, placebo-controlled clinical trial." Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol, 2026. PMID: 42628555.
  9. [pubmed] Zhu D, et al. "Mazdutide versus placebo in Chinese adults with type 2 diabetes." Nature, 2026;652(8108):174-180. PMID: 41407859.
  10. [pubmed] Ji L, et al. "Mazdutide 9 mg in Chinese adults with a body mass index ≥30 kg/m(2) but without diabetes: A phase 2 randomized controlled trial." Med, 2026;7(5):101063. PMID: 41875890.
  11. [pubmed] Bhattachar SN, et al. "Mazdutide reduces body weight in adults with overweight or obesity: A high-dose Phase 1 trial." Diabetes Obes Metab, 2025;27(11):6460-6469. PMID: 40832785.
  12. [pubmed] Ji L, et al. "Safety and efficacy of a GLP-1 and glucagon receptor dual agonist mazdutide (IBI362) 9 mg and 10 mg in Chinese adults with overweight or obesity: A randomised, placebo-controlled, multiple-ascending-dose phase 1b trial." EClinicalMedicine, 2022;54:101691. PMID: 36247927.
  13. [pubmed] Jiang H, et al. "A phase 1b randomised controlled trial of a glucagon-like peptide-1 and glucagon receptor dual agonist IBI362 (LY3305677) in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes." Nat Commun, 2022;13(1):3613. PMID: 35750681.
  14. [pubmed] Ji L, et al. "IBI362 (LY3305677), a weekly-dose GLP-1 and glucagon receptor dual agonist, in Chinese adults with overweight or obesity: A randomised, placebo-controlled, multiple ascending dose phase 1b study." EClinicalMedicine, 2021;39:101088. PMID: 34430840.
  15. [pubmed] Kamrul-Hasan ABM, et al. "Efficacy and Safety of the Dual Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 and Glucagon Receptor Agonist Mazdutide in Predominantly Chinese Adults With Obesity and/or Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis." Diabetes Obes Metab, 2026;28(10):8777-8794. PMID: 42410325.

Sources & Citations

Studies were read from their PubMed abstracts; the Chinese approval comes from Innovent's announcement. Read October 6, 2026.

Medical Disclaimer: This content is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, and nothing here is an instruction to obtain or use any compound. Talk to a licensed clinician about your own situation.

Last reviewed: 2026-09-30