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What is the full form of GLP-1?

GLP Guidebook teamUpdated 5 Oct 202611 sourcesWritten from published sources
The short answer

GLP-1 stands for glucagon-like peptide-1, a hormone your gut releases after you eat. “Peptide” means a chain of amino acids. “Glucagon-like” means about half that chain matches glucagon, a pancreas hormone. The “1” sets it apart from a sister hormone, GLP-2. Medicines that copy it are called GLP-1 receptor agonists.

Before you go further
  • GLP‑1 medicines are prescription-only in India and can't be bought over the counter.7
  • A government statement on 1 April 2026 said only endocrinologists, internal-medicine specialists and cardiologists can prescribe them.7 CDSCO expert-committee minutes attach a similar condition to some approvals (endocrinologist or internal-medicine specialist), but we found no rule covering every brand.10,11
  • The risks are in Guide 5: Side effects and risks.
  • Nothing here promises any result.

What does each word in “glucagon-like peptide-1” mean?

The name describes the hormone, a peptide whose chain partly matches glucagon's and which comes first of 2 such peptides in one protein chain.1

A peptide is a molecule made of 2 or more amino acids, the building blocks of proteins.2 Glucagon is a hormone from your pancreas that raises blood sugar.3

In the early 1980s, scientists found 2 glucagon-related peptides coded inside the glucagon gene. They named them glucagon-like peptides 1 and 2 (GLP‑1 and GLP‑2).1 In the protein made from that gene, GLP‑1 comes before GLP‑2.1 About half of their sequence matches glucagon's.1

Your gut releases GLP‑1 after a meal, mostly from the lower small intestine and the large intestine.1,8 It tells your pancreas to release insulin, slows how fast your stomach empties and signals fullness to your brain.8 Half of it is gone from your blood within about 1 to 2 minutes.1

What does “GLP-1 RA” or “GLP-1 agonist” mean?

RA stands for receptor agonist, the medical name for a medicine that switches on the same target as your own GLP‑1.

A receptor is a molecule on a cell that a substance locks onto to cause an effect.4 An agonist is a drug that binds to that receptor and does the same job as the natural substance.4

GLP‑1 receptor agonists are changed in the lab to act more strongly and last longer than your own GLP‑1.1 India's 1 April 2026 government backgrounder calls them “GLP‑1 drugs” and spells them out as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists.7

What is the full form of GIP, and how is it linked to GLP-1?

GIP stands for glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, a second gut hormone that, like GLP‑1, helps release insulin after a meal.

GIP is a chain of 42 amino acids, released by cells in your gut when you eat.5 It was first thought to slow the stomach and its acid, so it was named gastric inhibitory polypeptide.1,5 Later work showed it boosts insulin release when blood sugar is up. That is what “glucose-dependent insulinotropic” means.5

GIP and GLP‑1 are both called incretins (gut hormones that make the pancreas release insulin).1,5 The US Mounjaro label describes tirzepatide as “a GIP receptor and GLP‑1 receptor agonist”.6

Which medicines are GLP-1 receptor agonists?

India's 1 April 2026 government backgrounder names semaglutide, liraglutide, tirzepatide, dulaglutide and exenatide as GLP‑1 medicines on the market.7

Semaglutide is the medicine in Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, and tirzepatide is the medicine in Mounjaro.8 In India, Cipla launched Lilly's tirzepatide under a second brand, Yurpeak, on 10 December 2025.9 Guide 2: What GLP‑1 medicines do covers how they work in your body and which are sold in India. Our longer explainer of the hormone and its jargon is What is a GLP‑1?.

RisksThe risks, in brief
  • Stomach effects are common. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and constipation are listed for the whole class.8 In 2 placebo-controlled diabetes trials on the US Mounjaro label, 12% to 18% felt sick (nausea) on Mounjaro, against 4% on a dummy injection.6
  • Pancreatitis (a swollen pancreas) and gallbladder disease are rare but listed for the class.8
  • Dehydration from vomiting or diarrhoea can hurt the kidneys, says the US Mounjaro label.6
  • Low blood sugar (hypos) are more likely when taken with insulin or a sulfonylurea.8
  • Not recommended in pregnancy. The US National Library of Medicine also lists people with a history of medullary thyroid cancer or a family history of MEN 2; tell your doctor if this applies.8 Tirzepatide caused thyroid tumours in rats.6
Full detail in Guide 5: Side effects and risks →

Read the full picture

Related questions

Is semaglutide the same as Ozempic? What is tirzepatide? Do you need a prescription for GLP-1 medicines in India? What is retatrutide, and is it available in India?
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Sources

  1. Müller TD et al. Glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1). Molecular Metabolism 2019;30:72-130. doi:10.1016/j.molmet.2019.09.010 · PMID 31767182
  2. National Cancer Institute (US). NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms: peptide. cancer.gov
  3. National Cancer Institute (US). NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms: glucagon. cancer.gov
  4. National Cancer Institute (US). NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms: receptor and agonist.
  5. Meier JJ, Nauck MA. Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide/gastric inhibitory polypeptide. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab 2004;18(4):587-606. doi:10.1016/j.beem.2004.08.007 · PMID 15533777
  6. Eli Lilly. Mounjaro (tirzepatide) US prescribing information, revised 08/2026. US label, not the Indian one: we found no public Indian label. Boxed warning, sections 5.2, 5.3, 5.5, 5.8, 6.1 (Table 1), 12.1. pi.lilly.com
  7. Press Information Bureau, Government of India. GLP-1 Drugs: Use, Risks, and Regulation. Backgrounder, 1 April 2026. pib.gov.in (PDF)
  8. MedlinePlus (US National Library of Medicine). GLP-1 agonists. Review date 18 May 2026. medlineplus.gov
  9. Cipla Limited. Cipla launches Yurpeak (tirzepatide) for the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Press release, 10 December 2025. cipla.com (PDF)
  10. CDSCO. Recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee (Endocrinology & Metabolism), 100th meeting, 20–21 April 2023. Item 1, tirzepatide (Eli Lilly). PDF · archived copy
  11. CDSCO. Recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee (Endocrinology & Metabolism), 13–14 February 2024. Items 3–4, semaglutide (Novo Nordisk). PDF · archived copy

Last checked 5 Oct 2026 · Next review due 5 Oct 2027 · Report an error

How this answer was made. Written by the GLP Guidebook team from the sources above. It's general information, not medical advice. Talk to a qualified doctor before starting, stopping or changing any medicine. How we write