Biogen Sees Potential in Combining Alzheimer’s and Obesity Drugs

If Novo Nordisk A/S’s wildly popular weight-loss drug succeeds in a highly anticipated trial for Alzheimer’s disease, Biogen Inc.’s Chief Executive Officer Chris Viehbacher doesn’t see it as a roadblock for his company’s medication. Rather, he sees it as an opportunity to potentially combine drugs and create a more potent therapy.

“As we look out over the next five years, we’re probably going to see a treatment much like any other complex disease,” he said in an interview with Bloomberg News, meaning there will be “different mechanisms of action that you need.”

It’s not uncommon for drugmakers to ...