Peptide News Digest

#Cardiovascular-Risk

2 stories

Industry · View digest

Madrigal Rezdiffra EASL 2026 (May 20 Announcement): Cardiovascular and Portal Hypertension Risk Marker Data from MAESTRO-NASH + MAESTRO-NAFLD-1 Secondary Analyses

Madrigal Pharmaceuticals announced May 20 that multiple abstracts from its Rezdiffra (resmetirom) development and real-world evidence programs will be presented at EASL 2026 in Barcelona. Headline analyses include cardiovascular risk markers — secondary analysis of Phase 3 MAESTRO-NASH and MAESTRO-NAFLD-1 examining improvements in Lp(a), LDL-C, and ApoB — and portal hypertension risk improvement in compensated MASH cirrhosis (F4c) measured by ANTICIPATE-NASH risk scores. Real-world evidence and noninvasive biomarker analyses round out the slate. Rezdiffra (a thyroid hormone receptor β agonist, not a peptide) was approved March 2024 as the first FDA-approved MASH therapy for noncirrhotic MASH with F2-F3 fibrosis. The EASL data extend the case toward compensated MASH cirrhosis and cardiovascular outcomes — a competitive context for the GLP-1/glucagon peptide programs (semaglutide ESSENCE, pemvidutide IMPACT, survodutide SYNCHRONIZE-1, retatrutide MASLD Phase 3) running on parallel tracks.

Clinical Trials · View digest

CagriSema REDEFINE 1 BMI + Waist-to-Height Ratio Treatment Targets at ECO 2026 (May 12): 50.7% of Treated Patients Reach BMI <30 vs 10.2% Placebo

Novo Nordisk's CagriSema REDEFINE 1 treatment-target analysis presented as an oral presentation at ECO 2026 on May 12 reported that the cagrilintide + semaglutide combination drove a higher percentage of participants to clinically meaningful BMI and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) targets than any monotherapy or placebo arm. 50.7% of CagriSema-treated participants reached BMI <30 at week 68 vs 10.2% on placebo, and participants reaching BMI <27 plus WHtR <0.53 showed normalization of cardiometabolic parameters at higher rates than non-achievers. A companion REDEFINE 1 cardiovascular risk analysis scheduled for May 14 ECO presentation tracks predicted atherosclerotic CVD risk reduction. The data complements the May 12 body-composition substudy (35.7% fat-mass loss vs 14.4% lean tissue loss).