Researchers at Syracuse, New York have been working on the oral delivery of proteins and peptides and Emisphere believes this could lead to an alternate way of administering appetite-suppressing hormone PYY.
In addition to the in-house technologies at Syracuse, the researchers will have access to Emisphere’s Eligen, which they believe could solve some of the shortcomings of their delivery tool.
Robert Doyle, assistant professor of chemistry in Syracuse University's College of Arts and Sciences, explained: "The Eligen technology platform has shown great promise for improving the body's ability to absorb both small and large molecule drugs.
“Of great interest to us is its ability to overcome the limited natural absorption of our vitamin based carrier, which will enable us to achieve significant advancements in oral protein/peptide delivery."
By combining these delivery technologies the researchers hope they can create an oral formulation of PYY, which currently has to be injected.
Transporting molecules
Emisphere’s Eligen is designed to help small or large therapeutic molecules across biological membranes, such as the gastrointestinal tract, allowing them to act on target cells.
Once the drug has passed through the membrane the delivery vehicle disassociates itself, allowing the therapeutic molecule to return to its pharmacologically active state.
This technology potentially expands the portfolio of drugs that can be delivered orally, which can increase convenience and compliance compared to other routes of administration.
Researchers will use Eligen and the technology developed at Syracuse, which uses vitamin and polymer based methods, to create delivery vehicles for therapeutics including B12-insulin.
The B12-insulin therapeutic was demonstrated to have greater in vivo glucose lowering ability than free insulin when administered orally.