NNC0480-0389 dosage and evidence
Written by Aaron CuhaReviewed Sep 2026
The short answer
NNC0480-0389 is a drug that switches on the GIP receptor, being added to semaglutide in a 500 person mid-stage trial. Its mirror image, a GIP blocker added to semaglutide, is in a mid-stage trial at the same time.
Evidence grade for NNC0480-0389: Moderate. The rule: at least one finished study in people, and at least 100 people who took it. The sum on this page: 1 completed trial, 500 people given it. A grade counts how much has been done to people, not whether it works.
- People given it
- 500
- Human studies
- 1
- Found nothing
- 0
Dose
No human dose established
Amounts that were given in studies sit in Human evidence on this page. None of them is a personal dose.
1 completed trial, 500 people given it
2 effects reported, 2 unwanted, by people using it, not a trial
Goal pages: Fat loss and metabolism
In plain English
In plain English, from Aaron
This is how I would explain it to a friend. The evidence, with the numbers, is further down the page.
NNC0480-0389 is a long acting shot that switches on the GIP receptor. Novo Nordisk is testing it on top of semaglutide. Together they copy what tirzepatide does in one molecule. It is not approved anywhere.
What people take it for
- More weight loss on top of semaglutide.
- Better blood sugar in type 2 diabetes.
What studies in people showed
A mid-stage trial in 500 people with type 2 diabetes ended in March 2023. No journal paper has come out. The trial registry now lists results. Weight fell 9.8 kg on semaglutide plus a dummy. It fell 8.9 to 12.0 kg across the doses with this drug added. The drug on its own gave 4.7 kg, and a dummy alone gave 2.6 kg. So it may add a little to semaglutide. On its own it is much the weaker drug. A 152 person first study was never reported.
What people report
Reports, not study results
The good
- We have not collected user reports on this one yet.
The bad
- No side effect data has been published in a journal.
- A 152 person first study finished in 2022 and never posted results.
Where these come from: The numbers come from the trial registry entries on this page. We have no user reports.
My bottom line
My opinion: on the registry numbers, it adds a little on top of semaglutide and not much on its own. Until a full paper shows the side effects, there is nothing to act on.
An opinion, not a finding. I am a coach, not a doctor.
What it has been measured to do
Measured in people
Goals NNC0480-0389 has been tested for in people, biggest studies first. We count only what the studies on this page say, so the real numbers may be higher.
- Losing weight500 people · 1 study
35 of the 36 indexed goals have no study of any kind behind NNC0480-0389
No study in people, animals or cells on this page reports a result for these. That does not prove NNC0480-0389 does nothing for them. It does mean anything you have heard about NNC0480-0389 and one of these did not come from a study cited here.
Show full evidence
What is NNC0480-0389?
NNC0480-0389 is a drug that switches on the GIP receptor, being added to semaglutide in a 500 person mid-stage trial. Its mirror image, a GIP blocker added to semaglutide, is in a mid-stage trial at the same time.
This is the switch-it-on half of the GIP puzzle, tested as an add-on instead of one combined molecule. Novo Nordisk makes semaglutide. Pairing it with a separate long acting GIP drug gives a tirzepatide-like two switch approach, using two drugs instead of one.
The mid-stage dose finding study enrolled 500 people and is listed as finished. As of this review, no results are published.
What makes this page worth reading is not the drug on its own. AT673, a GIP blocker, is in a mid-stage trial being added to the same base drug for the same purpose. Both cannot be the right direction for the same reason.
How does NNC0480-0389 work?
It switches on the GIP receptor, which raises a messenger inside cells called cyclic AMP. In the insulin making cells of the pancreas, that boosts insulin release, but only when blood sugar is up. Its actions in fat tissue and the brain are thought to be where the weight effects come from. Those are less well understood. Paired with a GLP-1 drug, the goal is something like tirzepatide's two switch action.
What have studies in people found about NNC0480-0389?
A registered early and mid-stage programme with no published results. Everything on this page is registry information.
- The mid-stage dose finding study, given with semaglutide, enrolled 500 people and is listed as finished.
- No results are posted on ClinicalTrials.gov, and no paper checked by outside scientists was found for this drug.
- An earlier first study in people ran in healthy volunteers and people with type 2 diabetes.
- Another combination study is registered.
What this does not tell you: There is no result on benefit or safety to report. A finished 500 person trial with no posted results means the data exists and is not public. That is a statement about what you can know today, not about the drug. Anything shown as a result for this drug should trace back to a specific conference talk or paper.
The state of the research
This drug sits inside an open puzzle that runs through this whole family of drugs. Switching on the GIP receptor causes weight loss. That is how tirzepatide works. Blocking the GIP receptor also causes weight loss. That is how maridebart cafraglutide works. Both results come from human trials that compared the drug with a dummy. As of this review, two drugs are in mid-stage trials adding opposite GIP actions to the same base drug, semaglutide. NNC0480-0389 switches the receptor on, and AT673 blocks it. There are ideas about why both work. One is that keeping the switch on for a long time wears it out, so it ends up acting blocked. Another is that the brain and the rest of the body respond differently. None is proven. This site reports the puzzle rather than solving it, because nobody has solved it.
The evidence, in charts
Fig. 1a · how many people
500people, across 1 study in people cited here
| Study | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| ClinicalTrials.gov 2026 | 500 | 100% |
The whole total is one study of 500. Counts are the number of people each study on this page says it signed up. That includes studies that only watched people and gave nobody the compound. 2 more studies in people give no headcount and are not counted here. Studies still signing people up are left out, and only studies cited on this page are counted.
Fig. 1b · evidence mix
All 3 sources here are studies in people.
- Study in people · done in people3100%
Counted from the list of sources on this page. It counts only what we cite, so there may be more studies out there. A review counts once, however many studies it sums up.
Fig. 2 · evidence over time
Sources here come from just two years, 2022 and 2026.
Too few different years on this page to draw a timeline.
Fig. 3 · legal status at a glance
US
Not approved
UK
Not approved
AU
Not approved
CA
Not approved
Not approved in any of the four countries shown. This is what the law says, not a verdict on the science. See Legal status below for the full text and any notes.
Fig. 4 · how much does what
Nobody has tested different amounts in people
This chart would show how the effect changes as the amount goes up. For this compound, nobody has measured that in people. So we leave it empty. We will not borrow an animal chart and pretend it works the same in people.
Fig. 5 · what the molecule is
- Kind of compound
- Peptide
- Molecule weight
- Long-acting peptide agonist. No mass asserted; no source loaded states one.
- Half-life
- Stated in words, not a numbersee the exact wording below
- Chain length
- None on file
Half-life as stated on file: Long-acting, designed for weekly subcutaneous dosing alongside semaglutide. No specific figure resolved in the sources loaded.
No amino acid sequence is on file for NNC0480-0389, so none is drawn rather than guessed from a name.
The studies we cite
- Study in people2026A research study of NNC0480-0389 and semaglutide in people with type 2 diabetes
This trial has finished, and the registry now carries its numbers. Novo Nordisk enrolled 500 people with type 2 diabetes and completed it in March 2023. Weight fell 9.8 kg on semaglutide with a dummy added, and between 8.9 and 12.0 kg across the doses with the GIP drug on top. The GIP drug by itself gave 4.7 kg, and a dummy alone gave 2.6 kg. So it adds something to semaglutide, and on its own it is much the weaker drug.
Phase 2 dose finding, 500 randomised, completed March 2023, results now posted on the registry: body weight fell 9.8 kg on semaglutide 2.4 mg with placebo, between 8.9 and 12.0 kg across the four combination doses, 4.7 kg on NNC0480-0389 21.6 mg alone and 2.6 kg on placebo. It adds something to semaglutide and is much the weaker drug on its own. Novo Nordisk funded.
- Study in people2022A trial investigating NNC0480-0389 in healthy participants and people with type 2 diabetes
The first human programme finished and was never reported on the registry. Novo Nordisk enrolled 152 people across healthy volunteers, people with high body weight and people with type 2 diabetes, and completed it in March 2022. No results have been posted there. Four years of silence on a 152-person study is worth noticing, even when a later trial does report.
The earlier first-in-human programme.
- Study in people2026A study of NNC0480-0389 in combination with semaglutide
A newer study in this programme is recruiting and has nothing to report. Novo Nordisk plans to enrol 100 people who are overweight or obese, testing weekly injections of a GIP hormone and amylin together to see how they affect stomach side effects. Completion is estimated for January 2027. This one is about side effects, not weight lost, and no data exist yet.
A further registered study in the combination programme.
Where to buy NNC0480-0389
No seller we track lists NNC0480-0389 yet. We read sellers’ public product lists every week, and this section fills in as soon as one does. Every seller, graded
Common questions
Has NNC0480-0389 been tested in people?
Yes. 500 people given it across 1 completed trial cited here, 0 of which found nothing. NNC0480-0389 is a drug that switches on the GIP receptor, being added to semaglutide in a 500 person mid-stage trial. Its mirror image, a GIP blocker added to semaglutide, is in a mid-stage trial at the same time.
What is the NNC0480-0389 dosage?
No human dose established. Amounts that were given in studies sit in Human evidence on this page. None of them is a personal dose. 1 completed trial, 500 people given it
Is NNC0480-0389 FDA-approved?
Investigational. Not approved anywhere. A mid-stage study to find the right dose finished, with no published results.
What does this drug do?
It switches on the GIP receptor and is given alongside semaglutide, which switches on the GLP-1 receptor. Together that is the same two receptor combination tirzepatide gets in one molecule. No results have been published, so what it does in people is not yet public.
Why would anyone add GIP to semaglutide instead of just using tirzepatide?
Different makers, for one. The company making this makes semaglutide, not tirzepatide. Beyond that, keeping the two drugs separate lets each be dosed on its own, which a single fixed molecule does not.
Is there a result yet?
No. A 500 person mid-stage trial is listed as finished with no results posted and no paper found. The data exists and is not public.