Radical New Drug Delivery System
You may well be aware of an issue associated with the typical manner in which medications are administered. The fact of the matter is that drugs and medications taken orally are subject to the harsh acidic environment that makes up the stomach under normal conditions. For the record, the current practice employed today to get around this harsh chemical environment is accomplished through additional medications referred to as proton pump inhibitors (PPI).
Not surprisingly, ingestion of PPI also brings with it a few side effects. In addition, although it is certainly true that medications can be and are produced with so-called protective coatings. These external coatings are effective in allowing the medications to make it through the stomach. At the same time, you can readily understand that this sort of approach cannot be used for drugs targeting the stomach itself, thus the need for prescribing proton pump inhibitors along with medications intended for the stomach.
However, all of the above being said, there is some intriguing new research underway at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). This research could eventually do away with the need to use the PPI medications. Interestingly, the UCSD researchers have developed what they refer to as “micromotors”. These so-called micromotors are actually fueled by the acid in the stomach itself.
More to the point, these micromotors are manufactured from materials that are harmless to the body and are designed to both de-acidify the stomach environment as well as custom deliver the target medication precisely where it is needed. Incredibly, this UCSD micromotor drug delivery system can do all of this in less than 20 minutes. According to the UCSD research team, the stomach returns to normal conditions within 24 hours.
Speaking about this research, one of the UCSD scientists behind this research points out that this new drug delivery system most certainly holds promise for the treatment of stomach conditions as well as ulcers. Note that the UCSD drug delivery technology is rather unique in that these micromotors change the internal stomach chemistry while at the same time use the acidic environment itself as the means for propulsion.
You can easily see how this type of drug delivery system can completely change common medical practices for stomach conditions. Stay tuned as you are certain to hear more about this radical drug delivery system in the not too distant future.
