What all the talk about, Corbus Pharmaceuticals releases promising obesity drug safety data

Corbus Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CRBP) stock rose 5% after reporting positive results from its Phase 1a study of CRB-913, an oral CB1 inverse agonist being developed for obesity treatment.

The clinical-stage company announced that CRB-913 demonstrated a favorable safety profile with no serious adverse events reported in the single and multiple ascending dose study. Notably, the drug showed emerging evidence of weight loss, with a placebo-adjusted mean weight loss of 2.9% observed at Day 14 in a dedicated cohort of people with obesity.

The study assessed the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of escalating once-daily doses of CRB-913. Daily neuropsychiatric assessments remained negative for all participants, addressing a key concern for this class of drugs. The company reported no cases of suicidality, depression, or insomnia during the trial.

All CRB-913-treated participants in the obesity cohort experienced weight loss, with individual results ranging from 1.3% to 4.3%. Several participants also reported reductions in food-related thoughts and cravings.