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Magdalena Biosciences, a Joint Venture Between Jaguar Health and Filament Health, Initiates Preclinical Study of Coca for Appetite Suppression
Whole leaf coca extract under evaluation is Magdalena's drug candidate for post-GLP-1 weight loss management SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESS Newswire / March 16,
About this update from Jaguar Health, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Whole leaf coca extract under evaluation is Magdalena's drug candidate for post-GLP-1 weight loss management SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESS Newswire / March 16, 2026 / Jaguar Health, Inc. (NASDAQ:JAGX) (\"Jaguar\") today announced that Magdalena Biosciences (\"Magdalena\"), a US-based joint venture formed by Jaguar and Canada-based Filament Health Corp. (OTC:FLHLF) (\"Filament\"), has initiated a preclinical study evaluating the effectiveness of a whole leaf coca extract for appetite suppression. The coca leaf extract is Magdalena's drug candidate for post-GLP-1 weight loss management. This one-month study in mice is being conducted in Alberta, Canada.\"We are very pleased to have initiated this study of Magdalena's whole leaf coca extract being developed under FDA botanical drug guidance,\" said Steven King, Ph.D., Jaguar's Chief Sustainable Supply and Ethnobotanical Research Officer and an Advisor to Magdalena. \"Indigenous peoples and healers in the Andean region of Peru have utilized coca for centuries to manage hunger and fatigue. Magdalena is focusing on a number of potential applications for a coca-based therapeutic that can help suppress appetite, including but not limited to appetite suppression in people who have taken GLP-1's and related drugs on a short-term basis and who are eager to not add weight back following treatment. It's common for people to regain weight after stopping GLP-1 drugs because these medications actively change appetite and metabolism while you take them. When the drug is removed, the body's natural weight-regulation system often returns to its previous state.\"The coca leaf that is part of this Magdalena research and development program was provided to Magdalena by Empresa Nacional de La Coca (ENACO), a Peruvian state company dedicated to the commercialization of the coca leaf and derivatives, with an Internationally Recognized Certificate of Compliance (IRCC) in compliance with the Nagoya Protocol requirements of Peru.As announced, Magdalena also plans to evaluate a variety of potential mental health and central nervous system (CNS) indications for coca, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other neuropsychiatric indications.\"We believe the development of FDA-approved drugs from ‘whole extract' coca leaf can provide therapeutic benefit, and that the development process wil...