Maria Winzell, Senior Director Drug Development at Camurus, discussed how we can transform short-acting peptides into long-acting medicines. One of Camurus’ most notable offerings is FluidCrystal, a commercially validated platform for a broad range of molecules. Winzell’s also mentioned successes such as CAM2029, a depot of octreotide and one of the company’s key candidates reaching the late-stage pipeline and Brixadi/Buvidal, a commercialised product treating opiate dependence, has recently received EU/UK approval. According to Winzell, various endocrine disorders can benefit from a somatostatin receptor ligand.
Working with peptides is challenging because they are often sensitive to degradation, and many companies are trying to come up with strategies to modify the peptide. One of the most popular methods involves amino acid modification to avoid enzymatic cleavage and acylation for the binding to albumin to produce a long-acting version. Other strategies include FC conjugations and albumin conjugations.
FluidCrystal is a proprietary liquid depot formulation designed to address peptide delivery challenges. The platform utilizes lipid self-assembly technology to convert injectable compounds into a gel-like structure at the injection site, thereby enabling prolonged drug release and enhancing patient adherence. Winzell elaborated that when the FluidCrystal depot is injected into the body, it only takes seconds to form the depot and for the drug to start releasing. This is more advantageous compared with preformed depot formulations, which take longer to release the drug. Additionally, this depot is easy to self-administer and stable at room temperature.
Winzell demonstrated that the fluid crystal system has been tested with various peptides, including somatostatin analogues and GLP-1, showing the ability to extend the half-life of even very short-acting peptides like native GLP-1 from 2 minutes to 100 hours in animal studies. The ongoing work is conducting a phase 1 clinical trial comparing a once-monthly semaglutide fluid crystal product to weekly commercial options, with results expected soon, and is exploring broader applications in obesity, diabetes, neuropsychiatric, and substance use disorders.
