ORFO

Orforglipron

Not a peptide. A non-peptide small molecule and a partial agonist at the GLP-1 receptor, binding it at a site distinct from where the peptide agonists bind. Being a small molecule rather than a peptide is the structural reason it survives the gut, where the peptide GLP-1 analogues do not.

Orforglipron has 33 registered human studies on ClinicalTrials.gov, reaching phase 4, covering 29,343 planned or enrolled participants across the 33 studies that published a figure. An FDA-approved product contains OrforglipronFOUNDAYO (NDA220934). 117 papers naming it were published in the last ten years.

Collected 2026-08-02 from ClinicalTrials.gov and Drugs@FDA. Counts include only trials whose registered intervention names Orforglipron; the registry search is fuzzy, so every match is re-checked. None of this says whether Orforglipron works or is safe.

FDA status

Approved

Human studies

33

Furthest phase

Phase 4

Papers, 10 yr

117

Readership

9,289

monthly average, Feb–Jul 2026

Tracking since 2026-07-29 · About this data

What has actually been tested in humans

A

An approved product exists

33

Registered human studies

Phase 4

Furthest phase reached

29,343

Planned or enrolled participants, across 33 studies that published a figure

Approved

FDA-approved product — FOUNDAYO

50 loose registry matches were checked and 33 confirmed — 17 named something else and were discarded. We count a study only when Orforglipron is named as an intervention in it.

Registered means registered — not that the study finished, and not that it found anything. The grade is mechanical: it is computed from the registry and the FDA record alone, and it grades how much is known, never whether a compound is good or safe. Collected 2026-08-02 from ClinicalTrials.gov and Drugs@FDA. Check the query.

What Orforglipron is, and what it has been studied for

Orforglipron is classified by ChEMBL as a small molecule, and appears in trial registrations under LY-3502970 and LY3502970. Its FDA substance identifier is 7ZW40D021M.

Across 33 registered trials, it has been studied in Obesity, Overweight, Type 2 Diabetes and Healthy. A condition here is what a sponsor registered the trial under — it records what was investigated, not what was shown.

The trials were run by Eli Lilly and Company and Massachusetts General Hospital. A named commercial sponsor means a compound is in formal development; its absence does not mean the opposite, only that no company has registered a trial under its own name.

How far it got

Orforglipron reached Phase 4 across 33 registered trials.Phase 1First given to peoplePhase 2Looking for an effectPhase 3Tested at scalePhase 4Studied after approval

Orforglipron reached Phase 4 across 33 registered trials.

An FDA-approved product contains Orforglipron. Approval covers a specific product for a specific use — it is not a verdict on the molecule.

Is anyone studying Orforglipron?

Papers published each year that name Orforglipron in the title or abstract, with the clinical trials that started in the same year marked beneath. Ten calendar years.

025507510017181920212223242526trials
Vertical axis: papers published that year. Bar for 2026 is hatched because that year is still running.
Publications and trials naming Orforglipron, by year
YearPublicationsTrials startedComplete year
201700Yes
201800Yes
201900Yes
202000Yes
202100Yes
202200Yes
2023148Yes
20241710Yes
20253311Yes
2026604No

117 papers and 33 registered trials between 2017 and 2026. A paper counts when “Orforglipron” appears in its title or abstract — phrase-matched, so a paper mentioning the words separately is not counted. The total is a single query over the whole window, which is why it does not equal the bars added together: PubMed files a paper under both its electronic and its print publication date, so one paper can appear in two years. Publication volume measures scientific attention, not whether a compound works: a well-studied compound can be well-studied and ineffective. Sources: PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov · collected 2026-08-02.

Published research on Orforglipron

117 indexed papers name Orforglipron in their title or abstract. These are the 8 PubMed ranks most relevant. Listing a paper is not a judgement about it, and none of these is summarised here — follow the link and read what it says.

  1. Orforglipron, an Oral Small-Molecule GLP-1 Receptor Agonist for Obesity Treatment

    Wharton S, Aronne LJ, Stefanski A, et al.The New England journal of medicine2025

    PMID 4096023910.1056/NEJMoa2511774

  2. Orforglipron, an Oral Small-Molecule GLP-1 Receptor Agonist, in Early Type 2 Diabetes

    Rosenstock J, Hsia S, Nevarez Ruiz L, et al.The New England journal of medicine2025

    PMID 4054443510.1056/NEJMoa2505669

  3. Daily Oral GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Orforglipron for Adults with Obesity

    Wharton S, Blevins T, Connery L, et al.The New England journal of medicine2023

    PMID 3735156410.1056/NEJMoa2302392

  4. Orforglipron (LY3502970), a novel, oral non-peptide glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist: A Phase 1a, blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized, single- and multiple-ascending-dose study in healthy participants

    Pratt E, Ma X, Liu R, et al.Diabetes, obesity & metabolism2023

    PMID 3734495410.1111/dom.15184

  5. The pharmacological basis for nonpeptide agonism of the GLP-1 receptor by orforglipron

    Sloop KW, Cox AL, Wainscott DB, et al.Science translational medicine2024

    PMID 3969340710.1126/scitranslmed.adp5765

  6. Efficacy and safety of oral orforglipron in patients with type 2 diabetes: a multicentre, randomised, dose-response, phase 2 study

    Frias JP, Hsia S, Eyde S, et al.Lancet (London, England)2023

    PMID 3736923210.1016/S0140-6736(23)01302-8

  7. Efficacy and safety of once-daily oral orforglipron compared with oral semaglutide in adults with type 2 diabetes (ACHIEVE-3): a multinational, multicentre, non-inferiority, open-label, randomised, phase 3 trial

    Rosenstock J, Yabe D, Cox D, et al.Lancet (London, England)2026

    PMID 4176502910.1016/S0140-6736(26)00202-3

  8. Orforglipron (LY3502970), a novel, oral non-peptide glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist: A Phase 1b, multicentre, blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized, multiple-ascending-dose study in people with type 2 diabetes

    Pratt E, Ma X, Liu R, et al.Diabetes, obesity & metabolism2023

    PMID 3726471110.1111/dom.15150

Collected 2026-08-02from PubMed, phrase-matched on “Orforglipron” in title and abstract. Run the same search.

About Orforglipron

Not a peptide. A non-peptide small molecule and a partial agonist at the GLP-1 receptor, binding it at a site distinct from where the peptide agonists bind. Being a small molecule rather than a peptide is the structural reason it survives the gut, where the peptide GLP-1 analogues do not.

Also known as
LY3502970 · OWL833

Structure and mechanism only. Nothing above describes what this compound is for, and no dose appears anywhere on this page.

Reading on this compound

All articles

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