NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals Inc shares were down more than 6% at last check Wednesday.

The Boston-based company announced preclinical data for its novel “G-Protein-Coupled Receptor 119 (GPR119) agonist,” known as DA-1241.

The data from a study on mice suggests that DA-1241 — combined with Novo Nordisk A/S’s semaglutide (Wegovy) — improves liver fibrosis. It also demonstrates additive hepatoprotective effects compared to either treatment alone. 

DA-1241 did not influence liver weight, the company said.

In contrast, semaglutide reduced body weight by approximately 25% and improved hepatomegaly in GAN DIO-MASH mice with or without combination treatment. 

There was no additional weight loss in the combination group compared to semaglutide alone. 

DA-1241 and semaglutide monotherapy each improved NAS (≥2-point) in 21% of mice

Combination treatment led to marked improvements (≥2-point in 80% of mice and ≥1-point in all mice), driven by reduction in steatosis and lobular inflammation scores. 

Combination therapy synergistically promoted quantitative histology for steatosis compared to monotherapies. 

Treatments did not significantly influence quantitative markers of fibrosis (PSR, Col1a1)

DA-1241 and semaglutide in monotherapy lowered α-SMA levels with further improvement in combination treatment, suggesting additive inhibitory effects on fibrogenesis. 

At the end of treatment, semaglutide reduced body weight by approximately 17% (p < 0.05 vs. vehicle control), while DA-1241 (-2.8%) showed little effect.

There was no additional weight loss in the combination group (-19%, p < 0.05) compared to semaglutide alone. 

Collagen fiber deposition was prominent in mice treated with vehicle compared to the normal control group. 

DA-1241 or semaglutide alone lowered collagen-positive area compared to the vehicle-treated group (17.8%, 17.1% vs. 25.8%, p < 0.05). Their combination therapy elicited a further reduction to 6.05% (p < 0.05) compared with each treatment alone. 

Price Action: NRBO shares are down 6.11% at $4.30 at last check Wednesday.

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