Pioneers in Obesity Treatment: Lasker Award Honors Scientists Behind GLP-1 Drugs

Lasker Award Recipients:
The 2024 Lasker~DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award was awarded to Joel Habener (Massachusetts General Hospital), Svetlana Mojsov (The Rockefeller University), and Lotte Bjerre Knudsen (Novo Nordisk) for their groundbreaking work on GLP-1-based drugs for obesity treatment.

Impact on Obesity Treatment:
GLP-1-based drugs have revolutionized the treatment of obesity, offering a new era of weight management that promises to dramatically enhance health outcomes for millions of people worldwide.

Development of GLP-1 Drugs:
The research led to the development of drugs like liraglutide (Saxenda) and semaglutide (Wegovy/Ozempic), which have been approved for obesity treatment and have shown significant weight loss effects.

Potential for Broader Applications:
GLP-1-based therapies are being explored for their potential in treating a range of other conditions, including chronic kidney disorders, fatty liver disease, neurodegenerative diseases, and addiction.

Lasker Award Significance:
The Lasker Awards are highly esteemed in the biomedical community and are often seen as indicators of potential Nobel Prize winners.