Ascletis Pivots to Obesity, Slashes Funding for Former Core Programs

Chinese Biotech Shifts Focus to Metabolic Disease

Ascletis Pharma, a Chinese biotechnology company, has announced a dramatic shift in its research and development strategy, pivoting away from its former core programs in antiviral, oncology, and liver diseases to focus primarily on obesity and metabolic disorders. This strategic realignment, detailed in the company's full-year results, represents a wholesale transformation of Ascletis' pipeline and budget allocation.

Significant Budget Reallocation

The company's budget redistribution reflects the magnitude of this strategic shift:

• Viral diseases funding slashed from 33.7% to 0.4% of the R&D budget
• Liver diseases allocation reduced from 6.3% to 3.2%
• Oncology spending cut from 13.9% to 4.3%
• Metabolic disease R&D, previously not separately listed, now accounts for 63.6% of the budget

This reallocation comes in response to recent progress in Ascletis' obesity pipeline, which has shown promising early results. The company is terminating several programs in its former core areas, including ASC22 for chronic hepatitis B and HIV, and ASC10 for respiratory syncytial virus.

Promising Obesity Pipeline Drives Change

Ascletis' pivot is largely driven by encouraging data from its obesity drug candidates. The company's oral GLP-1 receptor agonist demonstrated a 6.3% mean weight loss after 28 days in clinical trials, suggesting potential market-leading efficacy. Ascletis is now accelerating its metabolic disease clinical trials, with plans to:

• Initiate a 13-week phase 2a trial of its oral GLP-1 agonist
• Share topline results from a phase 1b trial of its subcutaneous GLP-1 formulation
• Complete a trial of ASC47, a thyroid hormone receptor beta agonist, in combination with Novo Nordisk's semaglutide

Despite being based in China, Ascletis is conducting these trials in the United States, signaling its ambitions in the global pharmaceutical market.