Roche gains rights to Hanmi obesity drug that preserves muscle mass

Roche has licensed global rights, excluding South Korea, to Hanmi Pharmaceutical's clinical-stage obesity drug HM17321 for $190 million up front and up to $2.3 billion in milestones. HM17321 is a urocortin-2 analog designed to selectively reduce fat while preserving and building muscle mass, addressing a major limitation of blockbuster GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy and Zepbound. The deal bolsters Roche's metabolic pipeline as it competes with Gubra's rival urocortin-2 program.

Roche-Hanmi HM17321 licensing deal

• ▪Roche, through its Genentech subsidiary, will pay Hanmi Pharmaceutical $190 million up front and up to $2.3 billion in potential milestone payments, plus royalties.
• ▪Hanmi Pharmaceutical is responsible for completing the ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial of HM17321, after which Roche's Genentech will assume clinical development.
• ▪Roche licensed the global rights, excluding South Korea, to Hanmi Pharmaceutical's novel obesity treatment HM17321 on August 24, 2026.

Muscle preservation in obesity treatment

• ▪Preclinical research in animal models, including monkeys, showed HM17321 reduced weight both as a monotherapy and in combination with GLP-1 drugs.
• ▪Obesity treatments like Eli Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy cause a loss of healthy muscle tissue alongside fat reduction.
• ▪Hanmi Pharmaceutical's HM17321 is designed to selectively reduce fat mass while preserving and improving muscle mass and function.

UCN2-CRF2 receptor mechanism

• ▪Activating corticotropin-releasing factor type 2 receptors in skeletal muscle tissue is intended to increase muscle mass and reduce fat.
• ▪HM17321 is a peptide designed as an analog for urocortin-2, a neuropeptide that binds to corticotropin-releasing factor type 2 receptors.

Roche metabolic disease portfolio strategy

• ▪Roche paid Zealand Pharma $1.65 billion up front in 2025 to partner on petrelintide, an amylin receptor agonist designed to preserve muscle.
• ▪Roche acquired Carmot Therapeutics in 2024 for $2.7 billion, adding the dual-acting GLP-1 and GIP agonist CT-388 to its metabolic pipeline.

Competitive urocortin-2 drug development

• ▪Denmark-based Gubra initiated a Phase 1/2a clinical trial of its urocortin 2 candidate, GUB-UNC2, in July 2026.
• ▪Hanmi Pharmaceutical's Phase 1 trial of HM17321 began in November 2025, giving it an eight-month head start over Gubra's clinical program.

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