Incretin / GLP-1
Investigational
Survodutide
Also known as: BI 456906, BI456906, dual GLP-1/glucagon agonist
Dual glucagon and GLP-1 receptor agonist. Studied in metabolic research.
Research overview
Survodutide (development code BI 456906) is a synthetic peptide, developed by Boehringer Ingelheim, that activates two receptors: the glucagon receptor and the GLP-1 receptor. A fatty acid chain attached to the peptide makes it long-acting. In mice it lowered food intake and raised energy expenditure. In people, randomised placebo-controlled phase 2 trials were run in adults with obesity and in adults with MASH (metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis), a fatty liver disease with inflammation (Sanyal et al., NEJM 2024). Phase 3 trials published in 2026 tested it in adults with obesity, with and without type 2 diabetes (le Roux et al., NEJM 2026), and in adults with obesity and fatty liver disease. Gastrointestinal effects were the most common side effects reported.
Survodutide is an investigational drug and is not approved as a medicine in the UK, EU or US. Its long-term safety is not known, as the published trials lasted 76 weeks or less. Supplied for laboratory research use only.
Mechanism of action
Survodutide binds and activates the glucagon receptor and the GLP-1 receptor, two G-protein coupled receptors that are also both activated by oxyntomodulin, a natural gut hormone. In mice, GLP-1 receptor activity was shown by effects on glucose tolerance, food intake and stomach emptying, and glucagon receptor activity by changes in liver gene activity and blood markers (Zimmermann et al., 2022). Later mouse work found that labelled survodutide reached brain areas just outside the blood-brain barrier and activated nerve cells linked to food intake, which the authors attribute to its GLP-1 receptor activity.