Semaglutide

Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) used to treat type 2 diabetes by enhancing insulin secretion, reducing appetite, and promoting weight loss. It is administered as a subcutaneous injection once weekly and has shown significant efficacy in improving glycemic control and reducing body weight.

Semaglutide and Type 2 Diabetes: Efficacy, Safety, and Outcomes

Semaglutide offers a multifaceted approach to type 2 diabetes treatment, enhancing insulin release and reducing blood sugar through glucagon suppression.

What's Next for Semaglutide? Beyond Diabetes and Weight Loss

Engineered lettuce may turn injectable GLP-1 therapies into oral pills

Few drugs have entered mainstream awareness as quickly or as dramatically as glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1 receptor agonists. Initially approved by the FDA for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, they have since also transformed the therapeutic landscape of obesity and weight management.

6 Mar 2026

Drug combination shows greater weight loss while preserving muscle mass

A recent research study found that a combination of the GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide and bimagrumab, an antibody that blocks activin signaling pathways, results in greater weight loss while also preserving lean mass, such as skeletal muscle and connective tissue.

5 Mar 2026

GLP-1 drugs may be effective at treating and preventing substance use disorders

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis show in a new study that GLP-1 medications may be effective at treating and preventing substance use disorders across all major addictive substances studied, suggesting these drugs target a common biological pathway underlying addiction.

4 Mar 2026

How are GLP-1 drugs reshaping treatment for obesity, diabetes, and heart disease?

A comprehensive Lancet review synthesizes evidence from major clinical trials showing that GLP-1 receptor agonists and next-generation incretin therapies deliver substantial weight loss while reducing cardiovascular and kidney risks. Emerging dual, triple, and oral agents may further expand treatment options and improve outcomes across obesity, type 2 diabetes, and related metabolic diseases.

3 Mar 2026

The surprising neurological benefits of GLP-1s

For people with chronic migraine, taking glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, or GLP-1 drugs, for other conditions such as diabetes and weight loss, was associated with fewer emergency department visits and hospitalizations overall, and with less need for medications used to stop and prevent migraine attacks, according to a preliminary study released March 1, 2026, that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 78th Annual Meeting taking place April 18-22, 2026, in Chicago and online.

2 Mar 2026

Barshop Institute at UT Health San Antonio secures major federal funding for longevity trial

Positioning The University of Texas at San Antonio as a national anchor for aging and longevity science, its Sam and Ann Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies will receive up to $38 million in federal funding for the first nationwide clinical study in healthy longevity.

24 Feb 2026

ARPA-H-funded PROSPR program focuses on the biological hallmarks of aging

Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health has received an award as part of the PROactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience (PROSPR) program within the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to accelerate research on the biological hallmarks of aging.

24 Feb 2026

Untreated sleep apnea may cost the UK and US billions annually

Untreated obstructive sleep apnea may be costing the UK and US economies billions of pounds/dollars in lost productivity every year, with a considerable proportion of working age adults experiencing symptoms indicative of the breathing disorder, suggests an analysis published online in the journal Thorax.

24 Feb 2026

Combined GLP-1 and GLP-2 treatment appears safe but does not beat placebo for obesity

In a 12-week randomized phase IIa trial in adults with obesity, the dual GLP-1/GLP-2 receptor agonist dapiglutide was well tolerated but did not achieve statistically significant weight loss compared with placebo at 4 mg or 6 mg doses. Although the higher dose showed modest within-group weight reduction and improved HbA1c, unexpectedly substantial placebo-associated weight loss limited the observed treatment effect.

24 Feb 2026

Mounjaro ingredient shows promise in lowering alcohol consumption

For the first time, researchers show that tirzepatide - the active ingredient in the diabetes and weight-loss drug Mounjaro - reduces alcohol intake as well as relapse-like behaviors in rats and mice.

20 Feb 2026

Gut microbiome may shape response to GLP-1 drugs, new review suggests

This review examines how GLP-1 receptor agonists and the gut microbiome influence one another through bile acid signaling, short-chain fatty acids, and inflammatory pathways. It explores how microbial composition may shape treatment response and highlights the need for controlled human studies to enable microbiome-informed precision therapy.

19 Feb 2026

How GLP-1 drugs affect the body beyond weight loss and glucose control

This review evaluates the safety profile of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and related incretin therapies used for obesity and type 2 diabetes. It highlights common gastrointestinal effects, rare but debated risks, and areas where further long-term safety data are still needed.

18 Feb 2026

Oral weight loss ingredient may have adverse biological effects for the gut and beyond

A new study from Adelaide University is turning a spotlight on those tablet versions, finding that the absorption-enhancing ingredient salcaprozate sodium (SNAC) may have measurable adverse biological effects for the gut and beyond.

17 Feb 2026

Can GLP-1 drugs slow neurodegeneration? New review finds promising signals but limited clinical proof

This review examines how GLP-1 receptor agonists may influence neurodegenerative disease biology through metabolic, inflammatory, mitochondrial, and proteostasis pathways. Evidence from mechanistic, preclinical, and early clinical studies suggests potential neuroprotective effects, but definitive disease-modifying benefit remains unproven.

17 Feb 2026

Ozempic users continue treatment when weight loss works despite side effects

A study on Ozempic for weight loss reveals user satisfaction is driven by efficacy, despite common gastrointestinal side effects impacting treatment adherence.

13 Feb 2026

Brain circuit links past experiences to appetite control

Our past experiences shape how much we eat and where and what we choose to eat. Using preclinical models, researchers from Mass General Brigham and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have identified brain cells that translate contextual information into appetite control.

12 Feb 2026

Weight loss drug tirzepatide may lower the risk of diabetic retinopathy

The popular diabetes and weight loss medication tirzepatide (brand name Mounjaro or Zepbound) may lower the risk of diabetic retinopathy, a leading cause of vision loss, according to Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

11 Feb 2026

Semaglutide lowers cardiovascular events even without major weight loss, researchers report

Semaglutide reduced major adverse cardiovascular events in adults with overweight or obesity and established cardiovascular disease regardless of baseline adiposity. Cardiovascular benefit was largely independent of overall weight loss, with waist circumference reduction explaining only part of the effect.

11 Feb 2026

Engineered liver tissue model mimics early metabolic liver disease

More than 100 million people in the United States suffer from metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), characterized by a buildup of fat in the liver.

3 Feb 2026

Diabetes drug use linked to fewer gout treatments

Natalie McCormick, PhD, of the Rheumatology and Allergy Clinical Epidemiology Research (RACER) Center within the Division of Rheumatology in the Mass General Brigham Department of Medicine, is the lead author of a paper published in Diabetes Care, "Gout-Related Medication Use After Initiating Sodium–Glucose Cotransporter 2 Inhibitors in Patients With Gout and Type 2 Diabetes: Population-Based Target Trial Emulation Studies."

2 Feb 2026