STAT+: A new biotech startup tries to tackle obesity, but not in the way you might expect

Article excerpt

A new startup is making a bold move in the world of obesity drug development: It’s not working with the GLP-1 target that has taken the world by storm. Just a few years ago, the term “GLP-1” would have been a foreign concept to most Americans. Now, it’s everywhere, on billboards, TV advertisements, and magazine articles. Most startups hoping to edge their way into the multibillion-dollar weight loss market have their own GLP-1 drug candidate. But not Mwyngil Therapeutics.  Mwyngil, pronounced “mwin-gull”, is studying ways to spur weight loss without targeting the GLP-1 receptor. That’s what attracted CEO Luba Greenwood, a biotech veteran, to the company. “I was not interested in another ‘me too’ GLP-1, or GLP-1 plus something. … That’s not very interesting science,” she told STAT, in