Imagine a tiny, dissolvable sticker you place inside your cheek that delivers medicine directly into your bloodstream. It works like a shortcut, bypassing the stomach and liver which usually destroy complex drugs like insulin. This means patients can avoid daily needles and the strict fasting rules required by current oral pills.
Peptide drugs for Type 2 Diabetes currently require either painful injections or oral tablets that force patients to fast for 30 minutes, leading to poor treatment compliance.
A 3D-printed, multifunctional biomaterial patch that dissolves in the cheek to deliver peptide-analogues directly into the blood.
If you are a drug formulation specialist dealing with the low bioavailability of oral peptides — this project developed a multifunctional biomaterial patch that enhances the capacity of peptides to cross the cheek into the blood. This allows for the conversion of injectable drugs into a convenient buccal format.
If you are a 3D printing hardware provider dealing with a lack of high-value medical use cases — this project developed a layered 3D-printing process to manufacture mucoadhesive patches. This demonstrates a commercial path for precision additive manufacturing in drug delivery.
If you are a peptide therapeutic developer dealing with patient non-compliance due to injections — this project developed a platform technology for oromucosal delivery. This enables peptides that were previously incompatible with oral routes to reach the market.
Based on available project data, specific cost or pricing information is not provided.
The project utilizes 3D-printing for manufacturing the patches, and the consortium includes 5 industrial partners to support development, though specific scale-up metrics are not listed.
The project includes a Health Technology Assessment to support a commercialisation strategy, but specific licensing terms are not detailed in the provided text.
The project period runs from 2023-01-01 to 2026-12-31.
It targets Type 2 Diabetes as a showcase indication, specifically using a semaglutide analogue to provide a more convenient alternative to weekly injections or daily tablets.
The consortium is heavily weighted toward commercialization, with a 56% industry ratio consisting of 5 companies (including 3 SMEs). This balance of 4 universities and 5 industry partners across 7 countries suggests a strong focus on translating the 3D-printed biomaterial from a lab setting to a pre-clinical product ready for trials.
Contact University College Dublin (National University of Ireland)
Contact us to explore licensing opportunities for this 3D-printed drug delivery platform.
