Biomea Fusion (NASDAQ:BMEA) outlined progress on its clinical-stage pipeline during an Oppenheimer virtual conference appearance featuring CEO Mick Hitchcock and COO Ramses Erdtmann. The company discussed two lead programs: icovamenib, an oral small-molecule menin inhibitor being developed for diabetes, and BMF-650, an oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist being developed for weight loss.
Icovamenib: targeting insulin-deficient and GLP-1-inadequately controlled type 2 diabetes
Hitchcock said icovamenib is being advanced based on data from the company’s COVALENT-111 study in diabetic patients. He highlighted results in a subgroup described as “severe insulin-deficient” type 2 diabetes patients, where the company observed a reduction in A1C compared with placebo during a 12-week treatment period, and then continued A1C improvement after dosing ended.
Management attributed the sustained A1C improvement to the proposed mechanism: menin suppresses beta-cell proliferation and function, and inhibiting menin “takes off the biological brake,” potentially increasing insulin-producing capacity beyond the dosing window. Hitchcock also described this as recapitulating physiological processes seen in pregnancy, lactation, and weight gain, where menin suppression is associated with beta-cell pool expansion and increased insulin output.
Mechanistic observations and GLP-1 combination rationale
Hitchcock also discussed preclinical work in isolated islets, saying icovamenib increased insulin production and did so in part by upregulating GLP-1 receptors. He argued that higher GLP-1 receptor expression could improve responsiveness to endogenous GLP-1 activity.
In COVALENT-111, the company examined a subset of patients who entered the study already taking GLP-1 therapy but remained uncontrolled (A1C above 7.5). Hitchcock said these patients stayed on their GLP-1 regimen during the trial and showed A1C reductions with icovamenib versus placebo, with continued A1C declines after icovamenib dosing ended. He said increased insulin secretion was supported by C-peptide measurements, which he described as a proxy for endogenous insulin production.
Two follow-on studies: COVALENT-211 and COVALENT-212
To expand and better define the populations observed in earlier work, Biomea is moving forward with two studies:
- COVALENT-211: Adult type 2 diabetes patients previously treated with 1–3 anti-diabetic medications who are still not at A1C goal. Enrollment criteria include A1C between 7.5 and 10.5 and BMI ≤32. Patients continue background therapy and receive icovamenib or placebo. The primary endpoint is A1C at six months, with a 12-month A1C as a secondary endpoint.
- COVALENT-212: Patients on GLP-1 therapy who remain inadequately controlled. They stay on their GLP-1 background therapy and receive icovamenib or placebo. Hitchcock described enrollment criteria as A1C 7.5–9.5 and BMI 25–40.
In the fireside chat, Hitchcock described how the company originally used a European-derived algorithm (referencing a lead author he called “Ahlquist”) that separated diabetes into multiple subtypes, including severe insulin-deficient diabetes. He said Biomea used the algorithm in early analyses but concluded—after discussions with advisors and the FDA—that it would be impractical for routine clinical use because it relies on multiple tests and calculations. The company then narrowed eligibility to simpler, office-friendly criteria intended to capture the responders observed in its dataset.
Asked what A1C reduction might be clinically meaningful, Hitchcock said a 0.5 reduction at six months with further improvement by 12 months could be sufficient from a registration perspective, while a 1.0 reduction at six months and more than 1.0 at 12 months would be particularly compelling. Erdtmann added that the efficacy “hurdle” for a non-chronic therapy is not clearly defined, but he cited 0.5 as the minimum threshold the team observed among approved chronic diabetes agents. He also said the company believes time is needed for newly generated beta cells to mature, which he linked to the improving curve over time.
Hitchcock said the company has already filed the studies with the FDA and is working on site identification and startup, with patient screening expected shortly. He said COVALENT-211 is designed with 60 patients (40 on icovamenib and 20 on placebo), estimating enrollment could take about four months and suggesting the primary endpoint could be reached by the end of the year. He characterized the trial as non-registrational but potentially expandable into a larger Phase III if results are strong. Separately, the company’s summary slide cited a longer-term timeline, stating key catalysts would include primary endpoint data in 4Q 2026 for the 211 and 212 studies.
BMF-650: oral GLP-1 receptor agonist for weight loss
Biomea also discussed BMF-650, an oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist. Hitchcock said the program aims to improve pharmacokinetics to deliver a more consistent response with a simplified dosing regimen. He noted that animal studies showed a “generally favorable safety profile” and no liver function test abnormalities.
In a four-week monkey study with five animals per group, Hitchcock said oral dosing reduced food intake and body weight, with approximately 12% to 15% weight reduction over 28 days at 10 or 30 mg/kg. He compared the pattern to a Carmot compound previously developed by Roche.
The company has moved BMF-650 into a Phase I trial. Hitchcock said single ascending dose has been completed, and the program is now in multiple ascending dose across four cohorts. He said the trial enrolls overweight or obese volunteers so weight change can be observed over a four- to six-week dosing period. Biomea’s summary slide indicated it expects weight-loss data from this study around the middle of the year.
In discussion, management positioned BMF-650 as an effort to reduce reliance on injections and lengthy uptitration. Erdtmann also pointed to real-world persistence challenges, citing survey data indicating that up to seven out of 10 patients discontinue within the first year even with insurance coverage, and said the company is focused on improving patient-friendliness to support longer-term use.
About Biomea Fusion (NASDAQ:BMEA)
Biomea Fusion, Inc (NASDAQ:BMEA) is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Carlsbad, California. The company is dedicated to the discovery and development of small molecule therapies that target epigenetic regulators implicated in cancer. By leveraging a proprietary chemistry and drug discovery platform, Biomea Fusion aims to design precision medicines that modulate gene expression pathways involved in the initiation and progression of hematological malignancies and solid tumors.
The company’s lead clinical asset, BMF-219, is an orally bioavailable inhibitor of the menin–mixed‐lineage leukemia (MLL) protein–protein interaction.
