Engineering of an Ultralong-Acting and Nonaggregating Dual Amylin and Calcitonin Receptor Agonist with Durable Efficacy in Obesity and Diabetes
Synergistic activation of amylin and calcitonin receptors represents a distinct strategy for the treatment of obesity and diabetes. However, the inherent fibrillogenic aggregation propensity and short half-life pose significant challenges for their therapeutic translation. Here, we disclose the discovery and preclinical studies of TPM004, an ultralong-acting and nonaggregating dual amylin and calcitonin receptor agonist, endowed with balanced bioactivity. TPM004 displayed an extended half-life compatible with once-biweekly dosing in humans. In the DIO rat models, TPM004 produced robust and durable weight loss with preferential fat reduction while attenuating post-treatment adiposity rebound. TPM004 also demonstrated a prominent glucose-lowering efficacy and improved glucose homeostasis in the ZDF rats. Toxicology studies demonstrated broad safety margins for supratherapeutic exposures. Overall, these findings not only establish TPM004 as a novel DACRA preclinical candidate with strong translational promise but also represent a new paradigm for challenging peptide modifications through a long-acting helical stapling strategy.
Authors
- You Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6992-2124)
- Rongfang Chen
- Nan Zheng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2833-4374)
- Weijun Shen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8388-729X)
- Xueying Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3430-2317)
- Jichuan Qiu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9993-8220)
- Yan-Xia Lin
- Leiming Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8257-0175)
- Xin Sun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2821-0259)
- Pu Xu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3785-7812)
- Xiaoxuan Su (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5141-2692)
- Luying Yang
Institutions
- Torrey Pines Institute For Molecular Studies (US)
- Shenzhen Bay Laboratory (CN)
- Center for Translational Molecular Medicine (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Medicinal Chemistry
- Published
- 2025-11-12
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.5c02893
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Neuropeptides and Animal Physiology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.82