Following the ADA 2025 conference in Chicago, IL, the Mitotech team took some time to reflect – and it’s clear we weren’t alone in sensing a shift. This year’s event felt like a turning point in the field of obesity care.
What stood out most was the industry’s evolving focus. No longer centered solely on being able to meet the unmet medical need of significant weight loss, the conversation is now about how quickly, conveniently, and sustainably treatments can deliver results. Patrick Campbell captured this transition well in his summary of key presentations from the conference here.
One topic that received notable attention this year was muscle mass preservation – see this press release from ADA. The number of presentations discussing muscle protection during GLP-1-induced weight loss rose significantly this year. This focus marks a logical next step for the incretin-based therapeutic space. Reduction in lean body mass can represent 15-40% of total weight loss achieved through GLP-1 therapies. At the same time, muscle mass is the primary driver of metabolic rate – so preserving it during weight loss is not just beneficial, but essential.
This year’s conference helped clarify what the ideal obesity therapy should look like:
- A convenient, daily oral medication with
- Sustained and consistent weight loss exceeding 20%,
- Excellent tolerability and,
- Crucially, sparing muscle mass.
Companies are exploring various strategies to meet this profile – from oral versions of GLP-1 receptor agonists to novel compounds aimed at promoting muscle growth.
Future meetings, including ADA 2026 in New Orleans, LA, will help determine which approach – or combination of approaches – proves most effective. At Mitotech, we believe that a successful obesity therapy must go beyond appetite and satiety modulation. Enhancing and sustaining cellular energy expenditure should become part of the equation in order to achieve that optimal obesity treatment profile.
Stay tuned!