Retatrutide, called GLP-3 informally in this catalogue, is described in published research as an agonist at three named receptors: GLP-1, GIP and glucagon. The best-known report is a 2023 phase 2 randomized, placebo-controlled trial in 338 adults over 48 weeks. GLP-3 is a nickname for the compound, not a receptor name, and it is not GLP-2. [Jastreboff et al., 2023]
What the compound is
It is an investigational multi-receptor peptide agonist studied in metabolic research. It activates GLP-1, GIP and glucagon receptors; receptor activity and clinical outcomes are separate questions. Invented generation-style names circulating in marketing copy do not correspond to any receptor.
What the trial reported
In that 48-week phase 2 trial, body-weight outcomes were lower in the study arms than with placebo. The report also described gastrointestinal adverse events and increases in heart rate. [Jastreboff et al., 2023]
Reading benefit and harm from the same report is the point of appraisal. A summary that keeps the weight result and drops the gastrointestinal events and heart-rate findings has changed the evidence, not condensed it.
What the evidence does not establish
| Current programme stage | The cited report is explicitly a 2023 phase 2 trial; that is its stage, not a statement about today. |
|---|---|
| Canadian authorization | Any authorization claim requires checking the specific current record in Health Canada’s Drug Product Database. |
| Product equivalence | A research vial is not the trial medicine; trials study a specific manufactured product. |
Checklist for retatrutide claims
- Confirm the receptor list: GLP-1, GIP and glucagon.
- When “GLP-3” appears, verify that it means retatrutide and that the three targets are named clearly as GLP-1, GIP and glucagon receptors.
- Quote the study stage and year as published.
- Check authorization questions in the official database, not in marketing text.
Where to verify status
Health Canada’s Drug Product Database is the reference for whether a specific drug product is authorized for sale in Canada. An ingredient-name match in that database says nothing about an unrelated research vial. [Health Canada Drug Product Database]
