8:00 am Morning Refreshments
8:50 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
Exploring Novel Targets, Including Amylin & FGF21 Agonists, in Clinical Development to Assess Whether There is Improved Weight Loss by Increased Mechanistic Efficacy
9:00 am Exploring Amylin & Beyond: New Hormonal Targets for Enhanced Weight Management Options
Synopsis
- Revisiting hormonal targets, including amylin, to expand the therapeutic landscape for weight management
- Evaluating the potential of targeting gut hormones in various combinations to achieve sustainable and qualitative weight loss
- Understanding the complex interactions between pathways involved in appetite and energy expenditure to develop more effective weight management strategies
9:30 am Designing Peptides for Novel Targets to Create New Drug Candidates with Powerful Biological Functions to Treat Obesity
Synopsis
- Leveraging peptide-based drug discovery to target novel pathways and mechanisms involved in obesity
- Engineering peptides with enhanced potency, selectivity, and stability to overcome the challenges associated with peptide therapeutics
- Exploring the therapeutic potential of peptide-based drug candidates for the treatment of obesity, including their potential for personalized medicine and combination therapies
10:00 am Morning Break & Networking
Illuminating Innovative Novel Targets & Combinations in Preclinical Studies to Assess the Efficacy for Future Personalised Weight Management
11:00 am First-in-Class Leptin Sensitizer ERX1000, a Novel Treatment Paradigm for Obesity
Synopsis
- Understanding that leptin, a hormone that regulates appetite and energy expenditure, is a major obstacle in achieving and maintaining weight loss
- Unveiling a new and differentiated mechanism of action for the treatment of obesity
- How is a leptin sensitizer different from and complimentary to GLP1 therapies?
11:30 am Discovery of Small Molecule Melanocortin MC4R Correctors to Treat Early-Onset Obesity in MC4R Deficient Patients
Synopsis
- Loss-of-function mutations in the MC4R gene, resulting in impaired trafficking of MC4R to the plasma membrane, leads to MC4R deficiency (MC4R-d) in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus
- MC4R-d causes severe hyperphagia and is the leading monogenic cause of obesity
- Small molecule pharmacological correctors that stabilize and chaperone MC4R to the cell-surface to restore their function, represents a targeted therapeutic approach for the treatment of MC4R-d associated obesity
12:00 pm Lunch & Networking
Investigating Routes of Administration & Drug Modalities for Improved Patient Continuation to Avoid Weight Cycling Hariprasad Vankayalapati Chief Scientific Officer Biolexis 1.00 Oral Administration of
1:00 pm Oral Administration of Weight Loss Drugs for Easier Patient Administration & More Personalised Patient Care
Synopsis
- Improving patient adherence and convenience by developing effective and well-tolerated oral formulations of weight loss medications
- Facilitating personalized treatment approaches by enabling flexible dosing and dose adjustments based on individual patient needs and responses
- Expanding access to weight loss medications by developing affordable and accessible oral formulations for a wider range of patients
1:30 pm Mechanical Barriers as a Safe, Tolerable, and Sustainable Solution for Obesity Management: SYNT-101 for Weight Loss
Synopsis
- Understanding pharmacologic mechanisms to replicate gastric bypass via oral therapy
- Developing alternative mechanisms to incretin therapy for safe, sustainable, and effective weight loss
- Exploring the role of novel mechanisms to preserve lean mass and complement existing solutions while also playing a key role in maintenance therapy
2:00 pm Afternoon Break & Networking
Investigating Routes of Administration & Drug Modalities for Improved Patient Continuation to Avoid Weight Cycling
2:30 pm Next-Generation DNA-Based Delivery of Therapeutic Proteins Using MYO Technology: Preclinical Results on Incretin Receptor Agonists
Synopsis
- MYO Technology platform consists of therapeutic-encoding plasmid DNA (pDNA) and a proprietary medical device for the intramuscular injection of pDNA and the delivery of electrical pulses promoting the in vivo electroporation of muscle cells and uptake of pDNA, leading to production, secretion, and uptake of the therapeutic protein into peripheral circulation
- MYO Technology has been developed to overcome some of the drawbacks that limit access to many therapeutic proteins, such as: i) high manufacturing costs; ii) administration via time-consuming infusions; iii) frequent dosing, sometimes even daily; iv) requirements for low temperature storage
- Animal proof-of-concept studies demonstrate that expression of MYO Technology delivered incretin receptor agonists is pDNA-dose dependent and remains stable for several months or longer in vivo. Importantly, MYO Technology-produced incretin receptor agonists are functional and efficacious in promoting weight and glucose control in animal models of diet-induced obesity
3:00 pm The Patient Incretin Experience- An Argument for the Need of Oral Treatments
Synopsis
- Patient experience on current injectable treatments
- Limitations and setbacks of the current and forthcoming treatment regimens
- The benefits that will garnered with oral treatment options
3:30 pm Panel Discussion: Considering the Future of Obesity Therapeutics: Beyond Appetite Suppression for More Varied Treatment Options
Synopsis
- Discussing the limitations of current therapies that primarily focus on appetite suppression
- Exploring new targets and delving into emerging areas of research, such as targeting metabolic pathways, gut microbiota modulation, and precision medicine approaches
- Exploring the potential of combining different therapies and modalities to achieve more comprehensive and sustainable weight loss