Trinity compound research profile
Cagrilintide
Cagrilintide is a lab-made, long-acting version of a natural hormone your body already makes called amylin, which is released by the pancreas alongside...
Research overview
Cagrilintide is a lab-made, long-acting version of a natural hormone your body already makes called amylin, which is released by the pancreas alongside insulin and plays a role in feeling full after eating. Scientists attached a fatty acid "tail" to the natural hormone so it sticks to a protein in the blood (albumin) and lasts much longer in the body, allowing for once-a-week dosing instead of needing constant natural amylin (IUPHAR/BPS dataset).
Mechanism under study
Amylin is one of the body's natural "I'm full" signals. Cagrilintide copies and extends this signal by locking onto amylin receptors (docking stations) in the brain, especially in areas that control hunger and fullness. This tells your brain you're satisfied with less food, reducing appetite (Carvas et al. 2025).
Human evidence summary
This is a well-studied compound with strong real-world clinical trial data. In a 26-week study of over 900 people, cagrilintide alone produced weight loss of about 6-11% of body weight (compared to about 3% with placebo), and the highest dose actually beat a comparison weight-loss drug (liraglutide) (Lau et al. 2021). In a much larger 68-week trial with over 3,400 people, combining cagrilintide with semaglutide (called CagriSema) produced roughly 20% body weight loss compared to only 3% with placebo — a massive difference (Garvey et al. 2025).
Preclinical evidence summary
In mouse studies, cagrilintide reduced fat mass while helping preserve lean muscle mass, and researchers traced its weight-lowering effect specifically to certain amylin receptor "docking stations" in the brain (Carvas et al. 2025).
Source material
Use the linked publications and records to evaluate study design, population, limitations, and relevance.