Intellectual Property
Disclosed are methods of treating alcohol use disorder (AUD) and related conditions in human subjects using retatrutide, a triple agonist of the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R), glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (GIPR), and glucagon receptor (GCGR). The methods include monotherapy, combination therapy with naltrexone (a mu-opioid receptor antagonist), and synergistic dual-pathway treatment approaches. Claims cover methods of reducing alcohol craving, reducing relapse, modulating central reward pathway signaling, and dose-sparing combination regimens.
Twenty of the application's thirty-six claims — and six of its ten independent claim families — are directed to the combination of retatrutide with naltrexone, a mu-opioid receptor antagonist. The pairing unites two non-overlapping mechanisms: naltrexone blunts alcohol's reinforcing reward through opioid-receptor blockade, while retatrutide modulates consumption drive through incretin signaling. Together they produce synergistic — greater-than-additive — reductions in craving, consumption, and relapse, and enable a dose-sparing regimen at sub-therapeutic doses of each agent.
The claim families above are directed to alcohol use disorder. Because mu-opioid blockade is also the basis of naltrexone's approved use in opioid use disorder, Trivalent's filings additionally include method claims applying the same combination to OUD relapse prevention following medically supervised withdrawal. That 1984 approval covers naltrexone as a single agent only; the combination is investigational in OUD and in AUD alike, and no clinical data support it in any indication.
Explore the Synergy in DepthNo prior art discloses retatrutide for AUD treatment, or GCGR agonism for any addictive disorder. Competitive differentiation:
| Compound | GLP-1R | GIPR | GCGR | AUD Indication |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semaglutide | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | Not patented |
| Tirzepatide | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | Not patented |
| Retatrutide (our patent) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ Patented |
We welcome inquiries from pharmaceutical companies seeking to license these methods — in alcohol use disorder, in opioid use disorder as an adjacent investigational indication, or both — for clinical development and commercialization.
Contact Us