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Ed Yeates ReportingPharmaceutical experts in Utah this week are showing off some remarkable breakthroughs in drug therapies.
For example, a capsule missile you swallow which targets only the bad things in your body like cancer. And an implant the size of a matchstick that treats both alcoholism and drug abuse
Five months ago we showed you a new swallowable camera pill that takes 60-thousand pictures of your colon, then safely passes through the GI tract. Well scientists in the United Kingdom have come up with this miniature swallowable missile that does even more. This pill could carry drugs to a specific target, like colon cancer.
Dr. Ian Wilding, Pharmaceutical Profiles, United Kingdom: "We use a radio frequency signal from outside the body to tell the capsule when to release the payload. So from outside the body, a signal is received by the capsule, generates an electrical current on a circuit board, and causes the capsule to release its contents in an active manner."
But the capsule is not only thing active around here impressing the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. Salt Lake City is playing host to this 11,000 member association. In one meeting alone some two thousand abstracts on new technologies were presented to those members.
A Utah research group is already testing a new injection which time releases a drug that helps alcoholics or drug users kick their habit. Now a small biodegradable gel may do the same thing - time releasing a drug for up to 30 to 45 days.
Dr. Atul Shukla, University of Tennessee: “Here you’re forced compliance because of the injected gel in your system.”
Even more remarkable, beyond injections, how about an implantable device that could curb the appetite even longer.
Dr. Rajesh Patel, Titan Pharmaceuticals Inc.: “Basically this product is a matchstick size implant which you put under the skin, and it will provide the drug at a therapeutic level for about six months.”
"Fantastic Voyage" may have just been a sci-fi movie 37 years ago. But here in Salt Lake this week, it's REAL. During its Salt Lake sessions this week, the AAPS is showcasing breakthroughs and new technology from more than 500 pharmaceutical companies.
