Swallowable Robotic Pill Designed to Deliver Medication Could Eliminate Painful Injections

The administration of biologic drugs through injections poses challenges for millions of patients with chronic conditions, leading to discomfort and inconvenience that can impact compliance and quality of life. To address this issue, there has been a growing interest in developing solutions for oral delivery of biologics. However, protecting these drugs from digestion in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract has been a major hurdle, resulting in the need for repeated painful injections. Now, a swallowable robotic pill designed to deliver drugs while minimizing GI discomfort could improve the lives of millions of patients suffering from chronic conditions by replacing painful injections.

The RaniPill GO capsule from Rani Therapeutics (San Jose, CA, USA) is a swallowable robotic pill that incorporates various innovations to navigate through the stomach and reach the small intestine. Designed to ensure the drug remains protected within the pill until it reaches the desired location, this advanced capsule undergoes a remarkable journey. When ingested, it safely passes through the stomach, maintaining its integrity. Once it reaches the intestine, the pill releases a self-inflating balloon containing a microsyringe. This microsyringe then injects a drug-filled microneedle, delivering the medication. Importantly, the intestinal walls do not have a pain response to needles, making the injection painless for the patient. The needle dissolves rapidly, allowing for the medication to be absorbed, while the delivery mechanism deflates and is safely excreted from the body. In essence, the robotic pill acts as a swallowable auto-injector, enabling safe and painless intestinal injection of the drug. Additionally, the highly vascularized nature of the intestinal wall facilitates rapid drug absorption.

A recent study presented at ENDO 2023, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting, demonstrated the effectiveness of the RaniPill GO capsule. The study showed that teriparatide, a proven and effective medication for osteoporosis that is currently only available through injections, can be successfully administered orally using the RaniPill capsule. The study's findings indicated that the bioavailability of the drug delivered by the robotic pill was comparable to, or even better than, that of the injection. This study represents the first clinical evidence of the safe and successful oral delivery of the osteoporosis drug teriparatide through the use of a robotic pill.

"This breakthrough technology of converting injections into oral pills is a significant step forward towards ending the burden of painful injections for millions of patients suffering from chronic diseases," said Arvinder Dhalla, Ph.D., Lead, Clinical Development, Rani Therapeutics.

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