Eli Lilly in $650M pact to boost muscle

Eli Lilly joins forces with Juvena Therapeutics in an agreement worth more than $ 650 million to find molecules that stimulate muscle health. Collaboration will use the Juvnet juvena platform to detect and test proteins secreted by human stem cells as starting points for drugs that restore muscle function. Separately from the agreement, Juvena used the platform to develop its main candidate, Juv-161, a fusion protein of the growth factor of Insulin 2 type (IGF2)-a protein hormone similar to insulin which is secreted by muscle precursor cells and is involved in myoblast differentiation. Juv-161 restores the AKT signaling paths which regulate muscle growth and metabolism and is in a first human trial for diseases of waste of human muscles such as type 1 myotonic dystrophy.

Muscle strengthening drugs have recently captured the interest of Biopharma, drawn by concerns about the side effects of peptide 1 Glucagon agonists (GLP-1) such as Wegovy (Sémaglutide) of Novo Nordisk (Semaglutide) and the Peptide Peptide Gastric Inhibitory (Tirzepatide). When people lose body weight, they lose muscles as well as fat. Studies suggest that muscle loss can vary between 25 and 39% of lost weight, increasing the risk of sarcopenia and fragility, especially in the elderly. At least ten candidates for drugs who spare the muscles are tested alongside GLP-1 agonists for obesity.