BOSTON and SHANGHAI — September 28, 2026
Eccogene announced that it has received a $50 million milestone payment from AstraZeneca following initiation of the global Phase 3 clinical development program for elecoglipron (AZD5004/ECC5004), an investigational once-daily oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist. Eccogene discovered elecoglipron and licensed rights to AstraZeneca outside Greater China in November 2023. The Phase 3 program includes the Embold trials in people with obesity or overweight, with and without type 2 diabetes; the Eluminate trials in type 2 diabetes; and the Elevate outcome trials evaluating heart failure with mildly reduced or preserved ejection fraction and chronic kidney disease. The latest milestone brings Eccogene’s cumulative payments from the AstraZeneca collaboration to $295 million, with additional milestones and royalties remaining available under the agreement.
Elecoglipron Advances Into Broad Phase 3 Program
The global Phase 3 program is designed to evaluate elecoglipron across multiple cardiometabolic indications, reflecting the potential application of oral GLP-1 receptor agonism beyond weight management and glycemic control. The Embold Phase 3 trials will assess elecoglipron in adults with obesity or overweight, including populations with and without type 2 diabetes. The Eluminate program will evaluate elecoglipron both as a monotherapy and in combination with dapagliflozin for type 2 diabetes. Two additional Elevate outcome trials will investigate the candidate in patients with HFmrEF or HFpEF and in chronic kidney disease, with participants receiving dapagliflozin and other standard-of-care treatments. Elecoglipron is designed as a once-daily oral therapy without food- or water-related dosing restrictions, according to Eccogene, potentially providing an alternative administration approach to injectable GLP-1 therapies..
Phase 2b Results Support Elecoglipron Development
The Phase 3 transition follows positive topline results from the Phase 2b VISTA and SOLSTICE studies, which provided clinical data supporting continued development of elecoglipron. In VISTA, adults with obesity or overweight and at least one weight-related comorbidity achieved 11.8% weight loss at 36 weeks, according to the company. In the SOLSTICE study in adults with type 2 diabetes, elecoglipron produced a reported 1.9% reduction in HbA1c at 26 weeks. The results were presented at the American Diabetes Association 2026 Scientific Sessions and published in The Lancet. These findings are from earlier-stage clinical studies and will need to be confirmed in the larger randomized Phase 3 program, which is intended to evaluate efficacy and safety across broader patient populations and longer treatment periods.
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AstraZeneca Collaboration Generates $295M for Eccogene
Eccogene has now earned $295 million under its collaboration with AstraZeneca, including the newly triggered $50 million Phase 3 milestone. The original November 2023 agreement granted AstraZeneca exclusive rights to elecoglipron outside Greater China, while Eccogene retained co-development and co-commercialization rights in Greater China. Eccogene received an initial $185 million upfront payment and is eligible for up to $1.825 billion in total clinical, regulatory and commercial milestones, inclusive of milestone payments already received, in addition to royalties. Elecoglipron is the lead product emerging from Eccogene’s cardiometabolic pipeline, which also includes clinical-stage programs targeting THR-β and SSAO and preclinical programs involving GIPR, amylin receptor and other targets. The initiation of Phase 3 marks a significant expansion of the program as AstraZeneca leads global development outside Greater China.
Source :Eccogene press release
