Delivering Oral Peptide Drugs: A Pediatric Perspective
John Gleeson
Senior Scientist, Biopharmaceutics, Merck
Peptide drugs are powerful therapeutics, but they are typically limited to injectable routes of delivery due to their physicochemical characteristics. Recent advances in drug delivery technologies have enabled the successful formulation of oral peptide therapeutics. But as is often the case, the most vulnerable in our communities have not been prioritized – pediatric patients. In this session, I will discuss some of the unique hurdles in bringing oral peptide therapeutics from bench to crib-side including: pediatric physiology, appropriate in vitro, in vivo, and in silico models, and adapted formulation approaches.
Dr. John Gleeson is a Senior Scientist in Biopharmaceutics in Merck & Co. where he supports the development of oral drug formulations. Dr. Gleeson earned his PhD in Pharmacology from University College Dublin in 2017 under Prof. David Brayden. He carried out Postdoctoral research in “gut-on-a-chip” technologies at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and researched pediatric oral drug delivery at Carnegie Mellon University under Prof. Kathryn Whitehead.