Evidence review: Open Peptide Project (verified against primary PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov & FDA records) · Last checked 2026-10-27. ← Back to Evidence Library

Ecnoglutide (XW003): what the evidence says

Name: Ecnoglutide (XW003)
Published: 2026-10-27

At a glance

What it is: a long-acting, once-weekly injected GLP-1 analog from Sciwind Biosciences, designed to favor one signaling route (cAMP) of the GLP-1 receptor. ^R1 Approved in China in Jan 2026 for type 2 diabetes and Mar 2026 for weight management; not FDA-approved. ^R2

What the evidence says: Human in a 40-week phase 3 trial in 664 Chinese adults with overweight or obesity, weight fell 9.1% to 13.2% depending on dose vs a 0.1% gain on placebo. ^R3 Two placebo-controlled trials in type 2 diabetes lowered HbA1c. ^{R4, R5}

Biggest risks: stomach and gut side effects (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea) were common; there is no US label, so no FDA-reviewed warnings exist. ^R3

Rating


Human Human evidence	Moderate: phase 3 RCTs in obesity and type 2 diabetes (n = 664 and 211), all in China ^{R3, R5}
Animal Animal / lab evidence	Rodents and cells ^R1
Regulatory	Approved in China ^R2; not FDA-approved · not on FDA's 503A or 503B bulk-substance category lists and not on FDA's compounding safety-risk page ^{R6, R7, R8} · not named by WADA ^R9
Established human dose	No US dose (Chinese trial amounts only; see Study details)

Evidence verdict: Weight loss (overweight/obesity): Moderate (one 40-week phase 3 RCT, n = 664, China) · Type 2 diabetes: Moderate (phase 2 and phase 3 RCTs, China) · Other uses: No human data

This page reports what studies used. It is not dosing advice.

Legend: HUMAN data · ANIMAL / LAB data · UNKNOWN · UNVERIFIED: not yet confirmed against a primary source

About the evidence: the trials are solid randomized studies, but every one was run in China and funded by the company. They have not yet been repeated in other populations, and there is no head-to-head trial against semaglutide or tirzepatide.

What is it?

Related pages: semaglutide, tirzepatide, liraglutide, survodutide.

Does it work?

Human Weight (phase 3, 40 weeks, n = 664): weight change −9.1%, −10.9% and −13.2% across three doses vs +0.1% on placebo. At least 5% weight loss in 77% to 87% vs 16% on placebo. ^{R3, R10}
Human Type 2 diabetes (phase 2, 20 weeks, n = 145): HbA1c fell 1.81 to 2.39 points vs 0.55 on placebo. ^R4
Human Type 2 diabetes (phase 3 EECOH-1, 24 weeks, n = 211): HbA1c fell 1.96 and 2.43 points vs 0.87 on placebo. ^R5
Animal Designed as a cAMP-biased agonist; phase 1 in healthy adults supported weekly dosing. ^{R1, R11}

Is it safe?

Human In the obesity trial, 93% of people on ecnoglutide had at least one side effect vs 84% on placebo, mostly mild to moderate stomach and gut effects. ^R3
No US label, so there are no FDA-reviewed warnings or contraindications.
Long-term safety outside China is unknown.

Gray-market vials: extra risks

A gray-market vial has no quality control and no guarantee of identity, strength or sterility. We test retail vials blind under the Open Peptide Standard; see /tests/. A passing test covers one batch on one date and does not mean the compound is safe.

Is it legal?

US: not FDA-approved; no Drugs@FDA application found (openFDA searched Oct 27, 2026).
China: approved Jan 2026 (type 2 diabetes) and Mar 2026 (weight management), per a Drugs review of the first approvals. ^R2 UNVERIFIED not checked against the Chinese regulator (NMPA) directly.
Compounding: not on FDA's 503A or 503B bulk-substance category lists and not on FDA's compounding safety-risk page. ^{R6, R7, R8}
Sport: not named on WADA's 2026 Prohibited List. ^R9 Because it is approved in China, S0 (non-approved substances) does not appear to apply.

Study details

These are amounts researchers used, not recommendations.

Study	People / model	Route	Amount used	Follow-up	Reported	Citation
Guo 2023 (phase 1)	64 healthy adults	Subcutaneous	Single and weekly ascending doses	Up to 6 weeks	Generally well tolerated	PMID 37364710
Zhu 2024 (phase 2, T2D)	145 adults, China	Subcutaneous	0.4, 0.8 or 1.2 mg weekly	20 weeks	HbA1c −1.81 to −2.39 vs −0.55	PMID 39333121
Zhu 2026 (EECOH-1, phase 3, T2D)	211 adults, China	Subcutaneous	0.6 or 1.2 mg weekly	24 weeks	HbA1c −1.96 and −2.43 vs −0.87	PMID 41501026
Ji 2025 (phase 3, obesity)	664 adults, China	Subcutaneous	1.2, 1.8 or 2.4 mg weekly	40 weeks	Weight −9.1%, −10.9%, −13.2% vs +0.1%	PMID 40555243

Full reference list (PubMed, CT.gov, FDA and WADA checked Oct 27, 2026)

^R1 Guo W, et al. Mol Metab. 2023. PMID 37364710
^R2 Shirley M. Drugs. 2026. PMID 42412371
^R3 Ji L, et al. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2025. PMID 40555243
^R4 Zhu D, et al. Nat Commun. 2024. PMID 39333121
^R5 Zhu D, et al. Nat Commun. 2026. PMID 41501026
^R6 FDA, 503A bulk drug substances categories list (updated May 14, 2026). https://www.fda.gov/media/94155/download
^R7 FDA, 503B bulk drug substances categories list (updated Mar 21, 2025). https://www.fda.gov/media/94164/download
^R8 FDA, Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks (content current Apr 22, 2026). https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks
^R9 WADA. The 2026 Prohibited List, full list checked; compound not named. https://www.wada-ama.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/2026list_en_final_clean_september_2025.pdf
^R10 ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05813795, phase 3 in adults with overweight or obesity, Sciwind, completed, 664 enrolled (CT.gov API v2, checked Oct 27, 2026). https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05813795
^R11 ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04389775, phase 1 in healthy adults, Sciwind, completed, 64 enrolled (CT.gov API v2, checked Oct 27, 2026). https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04389775

Disclaimer

This page is for education and harm reduction, not medical advice or a recommendation to use Ecnoglutide (XW003). This medicine is approved in China but not in the US. Products sold online under this name in the US are unregulated. Report problems to FDA MedWatch (https://www.fda.gov/safety/medwatch).