Hoth Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: HOTH) announced on Tuesday that it has entered a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the Foundation for Atlanta Veterans Education and Research to investigate glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) as a potential metabolic therapy for obesity and hepatic steatosis.

The preclinical study, conducted at the Atlanta VA Medical Center, will compare daily GDNF injections against semaglutide in two validated mouse models: Western diet-induced obese CF-1 mice and TK-NOG human liver chimeric mice. Key endpoints include weight loss, liver histology, metabolic markers, human liver-specific gene expression and glucose metabolism.

Hoth Therapeutics will fund the study and supply GDNF, while the VA retains data rights and will share de-identified findings under HIPAA-compliant terms.

GDNF has previously demonstrated efficacy in reducing body weight, improving insulin sensitivity, and promoting fatty acid oxidation in preclinical models. It has also shown clinical safety in trials for Parkinson's disease.

This CRADA advances Hoth's strategy to repurpose GDNF as a novel therapy targeting metabolic disorders with high unmet need.