Eli Lilly Sues Six Companies Over Experimental Weight-Loss Drug

Eli Lilly and Company filed lawsuits Wednesday against six companies for the unauthorized sale of retatrutide, an experimental weight-loss drug currently in clinical trials. The pharmaceutical company is targeting four vendors selling the drug for research use—Astra Peptides, Legendary Peptides, Texas Peptides, and Lone Star Peptide—along with Striker Pharmacy, which produced a version of the drug, and Aesthetic Envy, a California-based med spa.

Company executives characterized the illicit market for the medication as a "global problem" driven by overseas manufacturers and social media promotion. While Eli Lilly intends to seek FDA approval for retatrutide in early 2027 to treat obesity and type 2 diabetes, it is now urging payment processors, social media platforms, and regulators to help dismantle the unauthorized commercial trade of the unapproved drug.