SHREVEPORT – Eli Lilly and Co. has sued a Shreveport-based online seller, alleging it markets an unapproved weight-loss drug to consumers while labeling its products for laboratory research only.
The lawsuit, filed October 8 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, accuses American Peptides of using social media influencers, customer weight-loss testimonials and sales of injection supplies to promote products it claims contain retatrutide, an experimental drug Lilly is developing.
The 37-page complaint says retatrutide had not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration or any other regulatory agency worldwide when the lawsuit was filed. Lilly alleges American Peptides’ sales endanger consumers and divert business from its approved medicines.
At the center of the dispute is whether American Peptides’ research-only disclaimers reflect how it actually markets and sells its products.
According to the complaint, the company’s website states: “For Laboratory & Research Use Only – Not for Human or Veterinary Use.” Purchasers also must confirm they are qualified research professionals age 21 or older.
Lilly argues those restrictions are contradicted by the company’s sales practices, including its promotion of customer weight-loss experiences and its sale of supplies used to prepare and inject the products.
“American Peptides’ website and social media presence make clear that it is selling materials for human use,” the complaint alleges.
The lawsuit identifies American Peptides as a Wyoming-organized limited liability company with its principal place of business in Shreveport. Lilly alleges the company fulfills and ships orders from Shreveport to customers nationwide.
Its website advertised retatrutide as its “#1 Research Peptide” and “best-selling triple-agonist research peptide,” with prices starting at $105, according to the complaint.
Lilly says customers selecting retatrutide automatically were offered a “required” reconstitution solution, accompanied by an explanation that they would need bacteriostatic water and a syringe to prepare it. The company also sold reconstitution kits, syringes and alcohol preparation pads, the lawsuit says.
The complaint describes an affiliate marketing operation called “The American Protocol Partner Program,” which offered commissions to people promoting the company’s products.
“Get paid to share something you actually believe in,” the program’s description stated, according to the filing.
Lilly cites posts by a TikTok affiliate identified as “kat,” whose profile listed an American Peptides email address and claimed “2+ mil in sales” and “1000+ lives transformed.”
When challenged about the products’ lack of FDA approval, the affiliate responded, “Weird because I sell to all the doctors, medspas, clinics loll,” according to the complaint. Lilly cites the statement as evidence that the products were being promoted for human use rather than laboratory research.
The lawsuit also points to a wholesale program that listed medical clinics and compounding pharmacies among potential customers, alongside research laboratories, universities and licensed resellers.
Retatrutide acts on three hormone receptors involved in metabolic processes, according to the complaint. Lilly says it is studying the drug in late-stage clinical trials for obesity, diabetes and other conditions, administering it as a once-weekly injection. Authorization to conduct those trials does not permit general commercial sales, the company says.
Lilly argues that consumers purchasing purported retatrutide outside the regulated drug-development process cannot verify what they are receiving.
“Consumers who purchase these illegal products are injecting themselves with substances of unknown composition, purity, potency, and sterility,” the complaint states.
The filing cites online accounts of hospitalizations and other adverse effects involving purported retatrutide obtained from unregulated sources.
Lilly also alleges financial and reputational harm. It contends American Peptides competes for customers who otherwise might use Lilly’s approved medicines and benefits from interest generated by Lilly’s research without bearing comparable development and regulatory costs.
The drugmaker further argues that negative experiences with unregulated products could undermine confidence in a future Lilly retatrutide medicine, should one receive approval.
The complaint brings eight claims under consumer protection, unfair trade practices and unfair competition laws in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Washington.
Lilly seeks a permanent injunction barring American Peptides from marketing or selling products containing or claiming to contain retatrutide, along with damages, surrender of profits and attorney fees.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana case number 5:26-cv-04146
