Sagimet Biosciences' Denifanstat Shows Sustained Improvements in 52-Week Acne Trial

07:07 AM EDT, 09/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Sagimet Biosciences (SGMT) licensing partner, Ascletis BioScience, announced Wednesday that its oral acne treatment, denifanstat, met its primary safety endpoint in a 52-week study, paving the way for a pivotal US phase 3 trial. Among 240 patients, treatment success reached 56.7% after up to 52 weeks, while total lesion counts fell 71.8% and inflammatory lesion counts declined 76.9% from baseline. Denifanstat was generally well tolerated, with no permanent treatment discontinuations due to adverse events or drug-related serious adverse events, the company said. Sagimet added patient screening for its US AURORA Phase 3 trial is expected to begin in Oct. 2026, with initial enrollment expected shortly thereafter. Sagimet Biosciences shares were up 8.9% in premarket activity.