--- title: "Liraglutide: Research & Side Effects | BodyHackGuide" url: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/liraglutide description: "Liraglutide: mechanism, clinical studies & side effects." lang: en --- Skip to content Compare notes on r/BodyHackGuide (https://reddit.com/r/bodyhackguide) Compare notes with other researchers. Join r/BodyHackGuide (https://reddit.com/r/bodyhackguide) # Liraglutide Metabolic & Weight Loss: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/wiki#cat-metabolic-&-weight-loss Status Approved (prescription) Evidence Not graded on a research bench yet Liraglutide (NN2211) is a once-daily injectable glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist developed by Novo Nordisk: a copy of human GLP-1 with one amino acid changed and a 16-carbon fatty acid attached, which lasts about 13 hours in plasma against 1.5 to 2 minutes for the natural hormone (Victoza label; PMID: 31031702). Reviewed 4 November 2026 01 Overview ## What Liraglutide is The FDA approved liraglutide as Victoza for type 2 diabetes on 25 January 2010 and as Saxenda for chronic weight management on 23 December 2014, and Drugs@FDA lists generic liraglutide approvals from 23 December 2024 (Drugs@FDA, searched 27 October 2026). In the LEADER trial of 9,340 people with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction or nonfatal stroke occurred in 13.0 percent on liraglutide and 14.9 percent on placebo over a median 3.8 years (PMID: 27295427). In the 56-week SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial of 3,731 adults without diabetes, mean weight loss was 8.4 kg with liraglutide 3.0 mg a day and 2.8 kg with placebo; Novo Nordisk funded both trials, LEADER together with the US National Institutes of Health (PMID: 26132939, PMID: 27295427). ### How it works ### A modified copy of human GLP-1 Liraglutide is an acylated GLP-1 receptor agonist with 97 percent amino acid sequence homology to human GLP-1(7-37): arginine replaces lysine at position 34, and a 16-carbon fatty acid (palmitic acid) is attached through a glutamic acid spacer to the lysine at position 26 (Victoza label). The peptide backbone is made in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) by recombinant DNA technology before the fatty acid is added (Victoza label). Read the full mechanism Show less A 2019 review by two Novo Nordisk scientists traces liraglutide to a program that attached fatty acids to GLP-1 so that it would bind serum albumin reversibly, the same protraction principle later used for semaglutide (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/semaglutide) (PMID: 31031702). In a 2000 laboratory study from that program, native GLP-1 activated the cloned human GLP-1 receptor in cell assays with an EC50 of 55 pM, and analogues carrying fatty acids of 12 carbons or longer were protracted enough in preclinical testing that the authors judged them suitable for once-daily dosing (PMID: 10794683). Native GLP-1(7-37) lasts 1.5 to 2 minutes in plasma because the enzymes dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) and neutral endopeptidase break it down (Victoza label). Liraglutide resists both enzymes, is more than 98 percent bound to plasma proteins, and associates with itself at the injection site, which slows absorption (Victoza label). ### How liraglutide lowers glucose Liraglutide activates the GLP-1 receptor, a receptor coupled to the stimulatory G protein (Gs) on pancreatic beta cells (Victoza label). The resulting rise in cyclic AMP increases insulin release when blood glucose is high and less so as glucose falls toward normal (glucose-dependent insulin secretion) (Victoza label). Liraglutide also lowers glucagon secretion in a glucose-dependent way and delays gastric emptying (Victoza label). In a 5-week crossover study of 49 adults with obesity but without diabetes, liraglutide lowered fasting glucose by 0.5 to 0.6 mmol/L and the meal-time glucagon response by about 30 percent compared with placebo (PMID: 23999198). ### Appetite and body weight (human data) In the same 5-week study, liraglutide 1.8 mg and 3.0 mg raised ratings of satiety and fullness and cut energy intake at a free-choice lunch by about 16 percent (PMID: 23999198). Gastric emptying over 5 hours was equivalent to placebo in that study, while emptying in the first hour was 23 percent slower on the 3.0 mg dose (PMID: 23999198). The authors concluded that the weight loss appeared to come from lower appetite and energy intake rather than higher energy expenditure (PMID: 23999198). ### Where liraglutide acts in the brain (animal data) In mice, fluorescently labeled liraglutide given by injection reached the circumventricular organs and bound neurons in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, among them proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) neurons, and uptake into the brain required the GLP-1 receptor (PMID: 25202980). Weight loss on liraglutide in rats did not depend on GLP-1 receptors in the vagus nerve, area postrema or paraventricular nucleus, and the authors proposed the arcuate POMC/CART neurons as the likely site of the weight effect (PMID: 25202980). ### Pharmacokinetics in people In a 2002 multiple-dose study of NN2211 in healthy men, the half-life after subcutaneous injection was 12.6 hours, exposure rose in proportion to dose, and 7 days of daily dosing gave an accumulation index of 1.4 to 1.5 (PMID: 11935150). The Victoza label gives peak concentrations 8 to 12 hours after injection, an absolute bioavailability of about 55 percent and an elimination half-life of about 13 hours, and says liraglutide is broken down like other large proteins with no single organ as the main route of elimination (Victoza label). A 2016 review by Novo Nordisk pharmacologists reports that exposure is lower with higher body weight and in men, is reduced with renal or hepatic impairment, and is largely independent of injection site, age, race and ethnicity (PMID: 26597252). ### The thyroid C-cell question (animal and human data) Liraglutide caused dose-dependent and duration-dependent thyroid C-cell tumors in rats and mice at clinically relevant exposures, which is the basis of the boxed warning on both US labels (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Novo Nordisk researchers found the GLP-1 receptor on rodent C-cells, where GLP-1 receptor agonists released calcitonin and caused C-cell hyperplasia, mainly in rats. Human and monkey C-cells expressed little of the receptor, and 20 months of liraglutide at more than 60 times human exposure caused no C-cell hyperplasia in monkeys (PMID: 20203154). In more than 5,000 trial participants followed for up to 2 years, mean serum calcitonin stayed at the low end of the normal range on liraglutide and on comparators, with no consistent dose or time relationship (PMID: 21209033). ### Studied for - Type 2 diabetes - Obesity - Cardiovascular outcomes - Diabetic kidney disease - Pediatric obesity - Incretin pharmacology - Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis - Alzheimer's disease ### Benefits listed - Major adverse cardiovascular events in 13.0 percent against 14.9 percent on placebo over a median 3.8 years in LEADER (PMID: 27295427) - Composite kidney outcome, driven by fewer new cases of persistent macroalbuminuria, in a prespecified LEADER analysis (PMID: 28854085) - Weight loss of 8.4 kg against 2.8 kg on placebo at 56 weeks in SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes (PMID: 26132939) - Type 2 diabetes diagnosed in 2 percent against 6 percent on placebo over 160 weeks in adults with prediabetes (PMID: 28237263) Show 4 more Show less - HbA1c 1.06 percentage points lower than placebo at 26 weeks in patients aged 10 to under 17 with type 2 diabetes (PMID: 31034184) - BMI standard-deviation score in adolescents with obesity in SCALE Teens (PMID: 32233338) - Apnea-hypopnea index in adults with obesity and moderate or severe obstructive sleep apnea (PMID: 27005405) - Resolution of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis on biopsy in 9 of 23 against 2 of 22 on placebo in a phase 2 trial (PMID: 26608256) 02 Research Free with email ## What the research shows No research bench grades Liraglutide yet. Benches compare compounds people pair, with the evidence for each. ### Unlock the research summary Enter your email to keep reading. It is free, and it opens these sections on every compound page in this browser. - A summary of the key research - Safety and side effects - A link to the PubMed results You also get the free peptide cheat sheet by email. Unsubscribe anytime. Have an account? Sign in (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/auth) 03 Safety ## Liraglutide side effects and interactions ### Side effects #### Common - Nausea in 27 percent on liraglutide 1.8 mg against 5 percent on sitagliptin (PMID: 20417856) - Nausea and diarrhea, mostly mild or moderate, the most frequent events in SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes (PMID: 26132939) - Diarrhea in 13 percent and vomiting in 11 percent in DURATION-6 (PMID: 23141817) - Resting heart rate 2 to 3 beats per minute higher than placebo (Saxenda label) - Serum lipase up 28 percent and amylase up 7 percent against placebo in LEADER (PMID: 28476871) #### Serious events - Boxed warning for thyroid C-cell tumors in rats and mice, with human relevance not determined (Victoza label) - Acute pancreatitis in 0.4 percent against 0.5 percent on placebo in LEADER (PMID: 28476871) - Gallstones in 2.2 percent against 0.8 percent and cholecystitis in 0.8 percent against 0.4 percent (Saxenda label) - Acute kidney injury after dehydration in postmarketing reports (Victoza label) - Hypoglycemia (including severe hypoglycemia) with insulin or sulfonylureas (Victoza label) - Anaphylaxis and angioedema in postmarketing reports (Victoza label) ### Who should not use it Contraindications The contraindications and cautions below are those stated in the US labels and trials, reported as the sources state them. Read all the contraindications and cautions Show less Both US labels contraindicate liraglutide in people with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or with multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2) (Victoza label; Saxenda label). A previous serious hypersensitivity reaction to liraglutide or to an excipient is a contraindication on both labels (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Both labels say liraglutide is not recommended in severe gastroparesis (Victoza label; Saxenda label). As for a history of pancreatitis, the labels warn about acute pancreatitis with GLP-1 receptor agonists (Victoza label). In LEADER, the 147 people with previous pancreatitis who received liraglutide were not more likely to develop acute pancreatitis than the 120 similar people on placebo (PMID: 28476871). For other GLP-1 receptor agonists, the Saxenda label says combining it with other liraglutide-containing products or with any other GLP-1 receptor agonist is not recommended (Saxenda label). With insulin or sulfonylureas, the labels describe a higher risk of hypoglycemia (including severe hypoglycemia) (Victoza label). The Saxenda label says weight loss offers no benefit in pregnancy and may cause fetal harm, and that liraglutide should be stopped when a pregnancy is recognized; pregnancy itself was removed from the list of contraindications in May 2025 (Saxenda label). Animal studies showed embryo and fetal toxicity (Victoza label). For surgery and sedation, the labels report pulmonary aspiration in people taking GLP-1 receptor agonists during general anesthesia or deep sedation (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Acute kidney injury has been reported in people who became dehydrated from gastrointestinal side effects (Victoza label). In the ADJUNCT ONE trial in type 1 diabetes, liraglutide added to insulin increased symptomatic hypoglycemia and, at 1.8 mg, hyperglycemia with ketosis, which the authors said limits its clinical use in type 1 diabetes (PMID: 27506222). In the US, Victoza is labeled for type 2 diabetes from age 10 and Saxenda for weight management in adults and in adolescents aged 12 and older with obesity and body weight greater than 60 kg (Victoza label; Saxenda label). ### Interactions 7 pairings in our record: 3 to avoid, 2 with a caution and 2 to monitor. - Semaglutide Avoid Semaglutide is another GLP-1 receptor agonist, and the Saxenda label says combining liraglutide with any other GLP-1 receptor agonist is not recommended (Saxenda label). The STEP 8 trial gave the two drugs in separate arms, never together (PMID: 35015037). - Tirzepatide Avoid Tirzepatide is a GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist (PMID: 35658024), and the Saxenda label says combining liraglutide with any other GLP-1 receptor agonist is not recommended (Saxenda label). - Exenatide Avoid Exenatide is also a GLP-1 receptor agonist. LEAD-6 and DURATION-6 compared it with liraglutide in separate arms, never together (PMID: 19515413, PMID: 23141817), and the Saxenda label says combining GLP-1 receptor agonists is not recommended (Saxenda label). - Insulin Caution Both US labels describe a higher risk of hypoglycemia (including severe hypoglycemia) when liraglutide is used with insulin (Victoza label). Adding liraglutide to insulin in type 1 diabetes raised symptomatic hypoglycemia and, at 1.8 mg, hyperglycemia with ketosis (PMID: 27506222). - Sulfonylureas Caution The Victoza label describes a higher risk of hypoglycemia (including severe hypoglycemia) when liraglutide is combined with an insulin secretagogue such as a sulfonylurea (Victoza label). - Metformin Monitor Metformin was the background treatment in the liraglutide trial against sitagliptin, where minor hypoglycemia occurred in about 5 percent of each group (PMID: 20417856), and in the ELLIPSE trial in children (PMID: 31034184). In children aged 10 and older, the Victoza label reports a higher risk of hypoglycemia with liraglutide regardless of metformin or insulin use (Victoza label). - Oral contraceptives Monitor Liraglutide slows gastric emptying. With ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel, total exposure was not reduced, while peak levels were 12 and 13 percent lower and came about 1.5 hours later (PMID: 21228406). The Victoza label says caution should be used with oral medications because of delayed gastric emptying (Victoza label). This interaction data is compiled from published research and community reports. It may not be exhaustive. Always consult a healthcare professional before combining compounds. Need bloodwork before starting? Full hormone + metabolic panels from Anabolic Insights. Code CHONCH for first-order discount. Order Bloodwork (https://anabolicinsights.ai/?ref=nwm2zjb) 04 Dosing Free with email ## Dosing No dose on record Our record lists no dose for Liraglutide. This section holds what it does list. ### Unlock the Dosing section - Route 05 Prices ## Liraglutide prices No listings We do not track a vendor for Liraglutide yet, so this page states no price. 06 Chemistry ## Chemistry and structure Molecular formula C172H265N43O51 Molecular mass 3751.2 g/mol CAS number 204656-20-2 Half-life About 13 hours after subcutaneous injection (Victoza label); 12.6 hours in a 2002 multiple-dose study in healthy men (PMID: 11935150). View on PubChem (https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/16134956) 07 Related ## Related to Liraglutide ### In the same category - AOD-9604Phase 2 AOD-9604 (Anti-Obesity Drug 9604) is a synthetic 16-amino-acid peptide fragment of human growth hormone (hGH) corresponding to residues 177-191 of the hGH molecule plus a tyrosine addition at the N-terminus (sequence: Tyr-Leu-Arg-Ile-Val-Gln-Cys-Arg-Ser-Val-Glu-Gly-Ser-Cys-Gly-Phe).: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/aod-9604 - ATX-304Phase 2a Clinical Trials ATX-304 (also known as O-304) is an orally bioavailable, first-in-class pan-AMPK activator with a mild mitochondrial-uncoupling effect.: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/atx-304 - CagrilintidePhase 3 Cagrilintide (also known as AM833, development code NN9838) is a long-acting amylin analog developed by Novo Nordisk as a next-generation weight-management therapy, designed to be co-administered with the GLP-1 receptor agonist semaglutide in a fixed-ratio combination known as CagriSema.: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/cagrilintide - CagriSemaPhase 3 CagriSema is Novo Nordisk's once-weekly subcutaneous combination of cagrilintide, a long-acting amylin and calcitonin receptor agonist, and semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, developed for weight management and for type 2 diabetes.: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/cagrisema - HGH Fragment 176-191Phase 2 HGH Fragment 176-191 (also written HGH Frag 176-191, hGH Fragment 176-191, and frequently appearing in clinical literature as AOD-9604 — "Anti-Obesity Drug 9604") is a synthetic peptide corresponding to the C-terminal 15-amino-acid region of the 191-amino-acid human growth hormone (hGH) molecule, with an additional N-terminal tyrosine residue added for stability and biological activity.: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/hgh-frag-176-191 - PetrelintidePhase 3 Petrelintide (ZP8396) is an investigational once-weekly injectable analogue of the pancreatic hormone amylin, developed by Zealand Pharma, that activates amylin receptors and the calcitonin receptor and is in phase 3 trials for weight management.: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/petrelintide All compounds (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/wiki) ### Compare Liraglutide - Alternatives to Liraglutide: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/alternatives-to/liraglutide ### Research tools - Peptide Calculator Reconstitution and syringe units: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/tools/reconstitution - Reconstitution Guide How to mix, step by step: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/guides/how-to-reconstitute-peptides - Nasal Spray Calc mL per actuation: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/tools/intranasal - Half-Life Visualizer Decay curves: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/tools/halflife All articles (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/blog) 08 Questions ## Frequently asked questions What is liraglutide? Liraglutide is a once-daily injectable GLP-1 receptor agonist made by Novo Nordisk, with 97 percent amino acid sequence homology to human GLP-1 and a 16-carbon fatty acid attached (Victoza label). Liraglutide is sold in the US as Victoza for type 2 diabetes and as Saxenda for chronic weight management (Drugs@FDA). Liraglutide has a plasma half-life of about 13 hours, against 1.5 to 2 minutes for natural GLP-1 (Victoza label). What is the difference between Victoza and Saxenda? Victoza and Saxenda both contain liraglutide, and both US labels say that using liraglutide products together is not recommended (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Victoza is the liraglutide product approved in 2010 for type 2 diabetes and in 2017 for reducing cardiovascular events in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease (Drugs@FDA; FDA approval letter, NDA 022341 supplement 27). Saxenda is the liraglutide product approved in 2014 for chronic weight management in adults and, since 2020, in adolescents aged 12 and older with obesity and body weight greater than 60 kg (Drugs@FDA; Saxenda label). What did the LEADER trial show about liraglutide and the heart? LEADER randomized 9,340 people with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk to liraglutide or placebo and followed them for a median 3.8 years (PMID: 27295427). Cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction or nonfatal stroke occurred in 13.0 percent of the liraglutide group and 14.9 percent of the placebo group, a hazard ratio of 0.87 (PMID: 27295427). The FDA added a cardiovascular risk reduction indication to the Victoza liraglutide label in August 2017 on the basis of LEADER (FDA approval letter, NDA 022341 supplement 27). How much weight loss was seen with liraglutide in trials? In SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes, adults without diabetes lost a mean 8.4 kg over 56 weeks on liraglutide 3.0 mg against 2.8 kg on placebo (PMID: 26132939). In adults with type 2 diabetes, weight fell 6.0 percent on liraglutide 3.0 mg and 2.0 percent on placebo over 56 weeks (PMID: 26284720). Weight fell 6.4 percent on liraglutide against 15.8 percent on once-weekly semaglutide over 68 weeks in the STEP 8 trial (PMID: 35015037). What are the most common side effects of liraglutide? Nausea and diarrhea, mostly mild or moderate, were the most frequent adverse events with liraglutide in the largest weight-management trial (PMID: 26132939). In a trial against sitagliptin, nausea affected 27 percent of people on liraglutide 1.8 mg and 5 percent on sitagliptin (PMID: 20417856). Gallstones were reported in 2.2 percent of adults taking liraglutide for weight management against 0.8 percent on placebo (Saxenda label). Does liraglutide cause thyroid cancer? Liraglutide caused thyroid C-cell tumors in rats and mice, and the US labels carry a boxed warning that states the human relevance of these rodent tumors has not been determined (Victoza label). Liraglutide stimulated calcitonin release and C-cell growth in rodents through GLP-1 receptors that human and monkey C-cells express at low levels, and 20 months of liraglutide caused no C-cell hyperplasia in monkeys (PMID: 20203154). In a Scandinavian cohort of 145,410 people starting GLP-1 receptor agonists, the drug class that includes liraglutide, thyroid cancer was not more common than with DPP-4 inhibitors over a mean 3.9 years (PMID: 38683947). Is generic liraglutide approved in the US? Drugs@FDA lists eleven approved generic liraglutide applications (Drugs@FDA, searched 27 October 2026). The first generic liraglutide, approved on 23 December 2024, is rated therapeutically equivalent to Victoza (FDA approval letter, ANDA 215503). The first generic liraglutide rated equivalent to Saxenda was approved on 27 August 2025 (Drugs@FDA). Related ## Articles on Liraglutide - How to Make a Peptide Nasal Spray at Home: The Complete DIY Guide (2026) Guides, 21 April 2026: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/blog/how-to-make-peptide-nasal-spray-at-home Free 2026 Peptide Cheat Sheet (PDF) 38 compounds and blends: vial sizes, BAC water volumes, dosing ranges and bloodwork markers. Download Free (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/guides/peptide-cheat-sheet-download) BodyHackGuide (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/) Your biohacking research hub: compound pricing, brain health protocols, dosing tools, and vendor reviews. support@bodyhackguide.co Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/Mhq5UdRYBA r/BodyHackGuide on Reddit: https://reddit.com/r/BodyHackGuide **Affiliate Disclosure:** We rank every vendor on the same public, reproducible methodology (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/vendors/methodology). Full details in our affiliate disclosure (https://www.bodyhackguide.co/affiliate-disclosure). **Research Disclaimer:** All compounds listed are for laboratory and research purposes only. Not for human consumption. This site does not sell or ship any products. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional and comply with local regulations. © 2026 BodyHackGuide. All rights reserved. - Terms: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/terms - Privacy: https://www.bodyhackguide.co/privacy ## Structured data ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Compounds", "item": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compare" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Liraglutide" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "MedicalWebPage", "name": "Liraglutide", "description": "Liraglutide (NN2211) is a once-daily injectable glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist developed by Novo Nordisk: a copy of human GLP-1 with one amino acid changed and a 16-carbon fatty acid attached, which lasts about 13 hours in plasma against 1.5 to 2 minutes for the natural hormone (Victoza label; PMID: 31031702). The FDA approved liraglutide as Victoza for type 2 diabetes on 25 January 2010 and as Saxenda for chronic weight management on 23 December 2014, and Drugs@FDA lists generic liraglutide approvals from 23 December 2024 (Drugs@FDA, searched 27 October 2026). In the LEADER trial of 9,340 people with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction or nonfatal stroke occurred in 13.0 percent on liraglutide and 14.9 percent on placebo over a median 3.8 years (PMID: 27295427). In the 56-week SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial of 3,731 adults without diabetes, mean weight loss was 8.4 kg with liraglutide 3.0 mg a day and 2.8 kg with placebo; Novo Nordisk funded both trials, LEADER together with the US National Institutes of Health (PMID: 26132939, PMID: 27295427).", "lastReviewed": "2026-11-04T22:36:28.707Z", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/compound/liraglutide", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "BioChonch", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/about", "jobTitle": "Founder & Lead Researcher", "sameAs": [ "https://reddit.com/r/BodyHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/BrainHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/Biohackingher" ], "worksFor": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "BodyHackGuide", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co" } }, "reviewedBy": { "@type": "Person", "name": "BioChonch", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/about", "jobTitle": "Founder & Lead Researcher", "sameAs": [ "https://reddit.com/r/BodyHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/BrainHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/Biohackingher" ], "worksFor": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "BodyHackGuide", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co" } }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "BodyHackGuide", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co" }, "mainContentOfPage": { "@type": "WebPageElement", "cssSelector": "main" }, "about": { "@type": "Drug", "name": "Liraglutide", "alternateName": [ "Victoza", "Saxenda", "NN2211" ], "description": "Liraglutide (NN2211) is a once-daily injectable glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist developed by Novo Nordisk: a copy of human GLP-1 with one amino acid changed and a 16-carbon fatty acid attached, which lasts about 13 hours in plasma against 1.5 to 2 minutes for the natural hormone (Victoza label; PMID: 31031702). The FDA approved liraglutide as Victoza for type 2 diabetes on 25 January 2010 and as Saxenda for chronic weight management on 23 December 2014, and Drugs@FDA lists generic liraglutide approvals from 23 December 2024 (Drugs@FDA, searched 27 October 2026). In the LEADER trial of 9,340 people with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk, cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction or nonfatal stroke occurred in 13.0 percent on liraglutide and 14.9 percent on placebo over a median 3.8 years (PMID: 27295427). In the 56-week SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial of 3,731 adults without diabetes, mean weight loss was 8.4 kg with liraglutide 3.0 mg a day and 2.8 kg with placebo; Novo Nordisk funded both trials, LEADER together with the US National Institutes of Health (PMID: 26132939, PMID: 27295427).", "activeIngredient": "Liraglutide", "administrationRoute": "Subcutaneous", "mechanismOfAction": "A modified copy of human GLP-1 Liraglutide is an acylated GLP-1 receptor agonist with 97 percent amino acid sequence homology to human GLP-1(7-37): arginine replaces lysine at position 34, and a 16-carbon fatty acid (palmitic acid) is attached through a glutamic acid spacer to the lysine at position 26 (Victoza label). The peptide backbone is made in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) by recombinant DNA technology before the fatty acid is added (Victoza label). A 2019 review by two Novo Nordisk scientists traces liraglutide to a program that attached fatty acids to GLP-1 so that it would bind serum albumin reversibly, the same protraction principle later used for semaglutide (PMID: 31031702). In a 2000 laboratory study from that program, native GLP-1 activated the cloned human GLP-1 receptor in cell assays with an EC50 of 55 pM, and analogues carrying fatty acids of 12 carbons or longer were protracted enough in preclinical testing that the authors judged them suitable for once-daily dosing (PMID: 10794683). Native GLP-1(7-37) lasts 1.5 to 2 minutes in plasma because the enzymes dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) and neutral endopeptidase break it down (Victoza label). Liraglutide resists both enzymes, is more than 98 percent bound to plasma proteins, and associates with itself at the injection site, which slows absorption (Victoza label). How liraglutide lowers glucose Liraglutide activates the GLP-1 receptor, a receptor coupled to the stimulatory G protein (Gs) on pancreatic beta cells (Victoza label). The resulting rise in cyclic AMP increases insulin release when blood glucose is high and less so as glucose falls toward normal (glucose-dependent insulin secretion) (Victoza label). Liraglutide also lowers glucagon secretion in a glucose-dependent way and delays gastric emptying (Victoza label). In a 5-week crossover study of 49 adults with obesity but without diabetes, liraglutide lowered fasting glucose by 0.5 to 0.6 mmol/L and the meal-time glucagon response by about 30 percent compared with placebo (PMID: 23999198). Appetite and body weight (human data) In the same 5-week study, liraglutide 1.8 mg and 3.0 mg raised ratings of satiety and fullness and cut energy intake at a free-choice lunch by about 16 percent (PMID: 23999198). Gastric emptying over 5 hours was equivalent to placebo in that study, while emptying in the first hour was 23 percent slower on the 3.0 mg dose (PMID: 23999198). The authors concluded that the weight loss appeared to come from lower appetite and energy intake rather than higher energy expenditure (PMID: 23999198). Where liraglutide acts in the brain (animal data) In mice, fluorescently labeled liraglutide given by injection reached the circumventricular organs and bound neurons in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, among them proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) neurons, and uptake into the brain required the GLP-1 receptor (PMID: 25202980). Weight loss on liraglutide in rats did not depend on GLP-1 receptors in the vagus nerve, area postrema or paraventricular nucleus, and the authors proposed the arcuate POMC/CART neurons as the likely site of the weight effect (PMID: 25202980). Pharmacokinetics in people In a 2002 multiple-dose study of NN2211 in healthy men, the half-life after subcutaneous injection was 12.6 hours, exposure rose in proportion to dose, and 7 days of daily dosing gave an accumulation index of 1.4 to 1.5 (PMID: 11935150). The Victoza label gives peak concentrations 8 to 12 hours after injection, an absolute bioavailability of about 55 percent and an elimination half-life of about 13 hours, and says liraglutide is broken down like other large proteins with no single organ as the main route of elimination (Victoza label). A 2016 review by Novo Nordisk pharmacologists reports that exposure is lower with higher body weight and in men, is reduced with renal or hepatic impairment, and is largely independent of injection site, age, race and ethnicity (PMID: 26597252). The thyroid C-cell question (animal and human data) Liraglutide caused dose-dependent and duration-dependent thyroid C-cell tumors in rats and mice at clinically relevant exposures, which is the basis of the boxed warning on both US labels (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Novo Nordisk researchers found the GLP-1 receptor on rodent C-cells, where GLP-1 receptor agonists released calcitonin and caused C-cell hyperplasia, mainly in rats. Human and monkey C-cells expressed little of the receptor, and 20 months of liraglutide at more than 60 times human exposure caused no C-cell hyperplasia in monkeys (PMID: 20203154). In more than 5,000 trial participants followed for up to 2 years, mean serum calcitonin stayed at the low end of the normal range on liraglutide and on comparators, with no consistent dose or time relationship (PMID: 21209033).", "legalStatus": "Approved (prescription)" } }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is liraglutide?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Liraglutide is a once-daily injectable GLP-1 receptor agonist made by Novo Nordisk, with 97 percent amino acid sequence homology to human GLP-1 and a 16-carbon fatty acid attached (Victoza label). Liraglutide is sold in the US as Victoza for type 2 diabetes and as Saxenda for chronic weight management (Drugs@FDA). Liraglutide has a plasma half-life of about 13 hours, against 1.5 to 2 minutes for natural GLP-1 (Victoza label)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the difference between Victoza and Saxenda?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Victoza and Saxenda both contain liraglutide, and both US labels say that using liraglutide products together is not recommended (Victoza label; Saxenda label). Victoza is the liraglutide product approved in 2010 for type 2 diabetes and in 2017 for reducing cardiovascular events in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease (Drugs@FDA; FDA approval letter, NDA 022341 supplement 27). Saxenda is the liraglutide product approved in 2014 for chronic weight management in adults and, since 2020, in adolescents aged 12 and older with obesity and body weight greater than 60 kg (Drugs@FDA; Saxenda label)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What did the LEADER trial show about liraglutide and the heart?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "LEADER randomized 9,340 people with type 2 diabetes and high cardiovascular risk to liraglutide or placebo and followed them for a median 3.8 years (PMID: 27295427). Cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction or nonfatal stroke occurred in 13.0 percent of the liraglutide group and 14.9 percent of the placebo group, a hazard ratio of 0.87 (PMID: 27295427). The FDA added a cardiovascular risk reduction indication to the Victoza liraglutide label in August 2017 on the basis of LEADER (FDA approval letter, NDA 022341 supplement 27)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How much weight loss was seen with liraglutide in trials?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "In SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes, adults without diabetes lost a mean 8.4 kg over 56 weeks on liraglutide 3.0 mg against 2.8 kg on placebo (PMID: 26132939). In adults with type 2 diabetes, weight fell 6.0 percent on liraglutide 3.0 mg and 2.0 percent on placebo over 56 weeks (PMID: 26284720). Weight fell 6.4 percent on liraglutide against 15.8 percent on once-weekly semaglutide over 68 weeks in the STEP 8 trial (PMID: 35015037)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What are the most common side effects of liraglutide?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Nausea and diarrhea, mostly mild or moderate, were the most frequent adverse events with liraglutide in the largest weight-management trial (PMID: 26132939). In a trial against sitagliptin, nausea affected 27 percent of people on liraglutide 1.8 mg and 5 percent on sitagliptin (PMID: 20417856). Gallstones were reported in 2.2 percent of adults taking liraglutide for weight management against 0.8 percent on placebo (Saxenda label)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Does liraglutide cause thyroid cancer?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Liraglutide caused thyroid C-cell tumors in rats and mice, and the US labels carry a boxed warning that states the human relevance of these rodent tumors has not been determined (Victoza label). Liraglutide stimulated calcitonin release and C-cell growth in rodents through GLP-1 receptors that human and monkey C-cells express at low levels, and 20 months of liraglutide caused no C-cell hyperplasia in monkeys (PMID: 20203154). In a Scandinavian cohort of 145,410 people starting GLP-1 receptor agonists, the drug class that includes liraglutide, thyroid cancer was not more common than with DPP-4 inhibitors over a mean 3.9 years (PMID: 38683947)." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is generic liraglutide approved in the US?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Drugs@FDA lists eleven approved generic liraglutide applications (Drugs@FDA, searched 27 October 2026). The first generic liraglutide, approved on 23 December 2024, is rated therapeutically equivalent to Victoza (FDA approval letter, ANDA 215503). The first generic liraglutide rated equivalent to Saxenda was approved on 27 August 2025 (Drugs@FDA)." } } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co#organization", "name": "BodyHackGuide", "alternateName": "BHG", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/logo.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 }, "description": "Evidence-based research reference for peptides and nootropics. 273 compound profiles, interactive dosing calculators, vendor price comparisons, and trust-scored vendor reviews scored on a public, reproducible methodology applied to every vendor. We earn a commission on purchases through some of our links.", "foundingDate": "2024", "founder": { "@id": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/about#person" }, "sameAs": [ "https://reddit.com/r/BodyHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/BrainHackGuide", "https://reddit.com/r/Biohackingher", "https://discord.gg/Mhq5UdRYBA" ], "knowsAbout": [ "Peptide research", "Nootropic research", "Biohacking", "Compound dosing", "Vendor transparency" ], "publishingPrinciples": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/editorial-standards", "ethicsPolicy": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/editorial-standards", "diversityPolicy": "https://www.bodyhackguide.co/editorial-standards" } ] ```