Lexaria Bioscience Corp. announced positive interim results from a human pilot study (the "Study") currently underway evaluating DehydraTECHTM technology for the oral delivery of the glucagon-like peptide-1 ("GLP-1") drug semaglutide available commercially in the branded product Rybelsus®?. The Study is being performed by a prominent university research center comparing a single 7 mg semaglutide dose of a Rybelsus tablet ("Control") to a matching dose from Rybelsus that had been compound formulated in capsule form using DehydraTECH processing technology enhancements ("DehydraTECH GLP-1").

This Study is only meant to provide early-stage indicative information to Lexaria about the possibility of enhancing the pharmacokinetic ("PK") and pharmacodynamic performance of orally delivered GLP-1 drugs to assist in guiding the Lexaria team in additional investigations. This Study is not complete and additional results will be reported, likely in two tranches: Lexaria has also collected blood glucose data and expects to release those interim results imminently. Then final results from the Study should be available in late December or early January.

Given the small sample size of this Study, it was not sufficiently powered for statistical significance analysis, which will be a key part of any expanded studies with DehydraTECH GLP -1 undertaken in the future. Separately, Lexaria is also exploring the possibility of studying DehydraTECH-GLP-1 in a multi-week human clinical trial to examine both diabetes-related control (in part via reduced blood sugar levels) as well as weight loss following treatment. Before proceeding with this human evaluation, the company hope to have the animal formulation PK and efficacy modelling test results so that can use the best-performing formulation in the multi-week human clinical trial.

Thus, all things being favourable, the multi-week human clinical trials could start near the end of second quarter or sometime in third quarter, 2024. Execution of the above-described animal study and multi-week human clinical trial will be contingent on raising additional capital necessary to fund doing so. Ultimately, Lexaria's goal in doing so will be to demonstrate advancements worthy of commercial product development and potential pharmaceutical industry strategic partnering interest, for superior performing oral GLP-1 drugs as more viable and attractive alternatives to the injectable format.

Rybelsus (semaglutide) is the only GLP-1 drug approved by the FDA for oral dosing to treat diabetes and weight loss. The FDA has also approved semaglutide marketed as Ozempic®? and Wegovy®?, administered by injection, to treat diabetes and weight loss management.

GLP-1 drugs have recently been approved by the FDA for type two diabetes and weight loss management. Because GLP-1 drugs have experienced FDA approvals as recently as 2021 and 2022, and because the health benefits of this drug class are still being discovered and understood, the potential market size is unknown.