New study reveals turbocharged GLP-1 drug helps shed body weight and fat in the liver
The research’s senior author, VCU hepatologist Arun Sanyal, is leading international efforts to understand survodutide’s impact on liver health.
June 08, 2026
The research is part of an ongoing program studying survodutide’s potential health benefits. (Getty Images)
By A.J. Hostetler
An experimental weight loss drug helped people lose significant weight and shed large amounts of fat from their livers, according to newly published research by a team of international experts, including a Virginia Commonwealth University hepatologist.
Study participants taking weekly injections of the GLP-1 drug survodutide over 48 weeks also saw improvements in markers for cardiovascular risk and liver injury, which are key drivers of liver scarring.
Scarring occurs when fat builds up in the liver, inflaming the tissue. As it progresses, it leads to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Over time, it can result in cirrhosis and even liver failure, requiring a liver transplant. It is also linked to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
Worldwide, about 1 in 3 people have MASLD, making it a major public health concern. Only two drugs in the United States — resmetirom and Wegovy — are approved to treat it.
“This trial demonstrates the potential benefits of survodutide even in those with earlier stages of MASLD, which commonly occurs in those with obesity. It builds on prior demonstration of benefit in those with more advanced scarring of the liver due to MASLD. Together they provide evidence that survodutide can improve MASLD along its entire spectrum of severity,” said senior author Arun Sanyal, M.D., director of the VCU Stravitz-Sanyal Institute for Liver Disease and Metabolic Health (SSLI) and professor at VCU School of Medicine. The paper was published by Nature Medicine.
The study, part of the larger ongoing SYNCHRONIZE program evaluating survodutide’s potential health benefits, involved 216 patients at 37 sites throughout the United States and Spain. Participants were all adults who were overweight or with obesity and diagnosed with MASLD — a common condition in people with higher body weight.
In the phase 3 clinical trial, 84% of those given survodutide were able to reduce their liver fat by at least 30%, while only 24% of those given the placebo had the same outcomes. Additionally, 61% of those using survodutide reduced the amount of fat in their liver to a normal level, compared with 5.7% on placebo. Participants given survodutide also lost 12% of their body weight on average compared to 1% on placebo.
Survodutide targets both the appetite-reducing GLP-1 receptor agonist and a glucagon receptor, which is found in the liver, that increases the body’s ability to burn fat in the liver, promotes fat clearance in the liver and resolves inflammation and scarring. The resulting turbocharged molecule, called a dual agonist, is related to the natural gut hormone oxyntomodulin.
In addition to studying survodutide, Sanyal leads several other projects evaluating the benefits of GLP-1 drugs and derivatives on obesity and MASLD.
Separately, Amon Asgharpour, M.D., an associate professor at the VCU School of Medicine and hepatologist at SSLI, recently received a $1.3 million sponsor-initiated grant to recruit participants with more advanced scarring and cirrhosis for a clinical trial using the same GLP-1.
Survodutide, a medication licensed to Boehringer Ingelheim from Zealand Pharma, was granted “Breakthrough Therapy Designation” by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This expedites the development and review of drugs treating serious conditions, based on preliminary evidence showing substantial improvement over existing options.
