The course objectives are i) to give participants an in-depth overview of important fundamental principles for drug delivery and ii) to present methodologies for optimising delivery of different drug classes ranging from small molecules to complex biomacromolecules (peptides, proteins, nucleic acids and vaccines).

One of the main scientific challenges in pharmaceutical development is to deliver the drug compound in a controlled way at the site of action in a therapeutically optimal amount to obtain the desired pharmacological effect. Drug delivery is challenged by the existence of a variety of barriers related to either intrinsic drug characteristics and/or to the relevant physiological environment in the body. It is of utmost importance to have a basic understanding of the extent to which these barriers affect the the drug bioavailability, i.e. the relative rate and amount of the drug which reaches the target site.

An undesired low bioavailability may be a result of the presence of physiological or metabolic barriers, which a drug compound has to overcome before reaching the target site. Additional hurdles for drug delivery are e.g. an unfavorable biodistribution profile of the drug, physico-chemical drug properties, and a suboptimal pharmaceutical formulation.

Approaches to overcome barriers of drug delivery include the choice of administration route as well as formulation design to modify drug characteristics. When optimizing drug delivery it is important to obtain a fundamental knowledge of the complex drug release characteristics in biological environments, biotransformation, as well as drug transport to the target site. A more rational design of drug compounds and pharmaceutical delivery systems is alo enabled by a better understanding of the structural and dynamic functions of biological membrane barriers, e.g. the interplay between lipid bilayer structure, specific membrane transporters and drug molecules or excipients.

The lectures will cover the following key topics:

• Biological barriers and administration routes
• Metabolic barriers
• Physico-chemical characteristics of drug substances
• Advanced drug delivery systems and targeting (e.g. lipid- and polymer-based delivery systems)
• Delivery of small molecule drugs (e.g. poorly soluble drugs and pro-drugs)
• Delivery of biomacromolecules (e.g. peptides, proteins, nucleic acids and vaccines)
• Membrane biophysics in drug delivery
• Imaging in drug delivery
• Industrial perspectives on drug delivery
• Safety and toxicity of nanocarrier systems
• The use of in vitro and in vivo models in drug delivery

The 5-day course comprises about 20 lectures. Each lecture will be followed by discussions. The participants will be actively involved in the teaching program through interactive lectures and group work. 

Study materials will be handed out.

All participants are required to write a 10 page essay on a selected subject after the course. The participant is evaluated on the basis of this essay. The participants may suggest a topic related to their own research subject.

A pass/fail is given by the course directors to the participants based on the essay.

7 to 11 May 2012.

4 ECTS credit points (European Credit Transfer System).

104 working hours (5 for preparation, 30 for course, 9 for group work, and 60 for reports). 

Associate Professors Camilla Foged and Hanne Mørck Nielsen, Department of Pharmaceutics and Analytical Chemistry at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Copenhagen.

Total course fee: DKK 8,900 (including lunch),

of which operating costs: DKK 1,600.

1 March 2012.

30 participants.

Conditions for participation: The course is mainly offered to PhD students who have completed undergraduate courses in pharmaceutics, chemistry or biology.

The course will only be held in English.