Ep. 262, Chapter 5: Courage Therapeutics' Development Pipeline With Roger Cone, Ph.D.

38:11 – 48:07

Courage Therapeutics is developing next-gen MC3 and MC4 agonists for obesity and anorexia nervosa. The company's goal is to create compounds with better potency and specificity than existing treatments like setmelanotide. They are currently conducting safety and efficacy studies and aim to begin clinical trials in 6-18 months.

The company has discovered a phenomenon called melanocortin hypersensitization, and their research shows that even low doses of MC4 agonists can make the body's weight-loss response to GLP-1 drugs significantly more effective. These findings could lead to greater weight loss through GLP-1s, allow for lower, more tolerable doses of GLP-1 drugs, and reduce side effects like nausea.

While the approach for using MC4 agonists to treat anorexia nervosa is complex, there is evidence that targeting the leptin-melanocortin pathway could help with neuropsychiatric symptoms associated with the condition. A more straightforward application could be for the anorexia of aging, where appetite loss leads to significant health problems in the elderly.