An Experimental Obesity Pill Mimics Gastric Bypass Surgery

The booming popularity of Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs for weight loss has led to a flurry of companies vying to make new and improved anti-obesity medications. One of those is Boston-based Syntis Bio, which is working on a daily pill that mimics the effects of gastric bypass—no actual surgery required. Today, the company announced early data from animals and a small group of human volunteers showing that its approach is safe and may be able to suppress hunger. The company presented the findings Thursday at the European Congress on Obesity and Weight Management. “We're at a stage with obesity treatment where it's important for us to figure out, how do we now tune it to be more effective?” says Rahul Dhanda, Syntis Bio’s CEO and cofounder. A poll conducted in April and May of 2024 found that around 12 percent of Americans have tried a GLP-1 drug such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, or Mounjaro—a number that has likely only grown over the past year. But many people eventually stop usin ... Read full article.