Human trials to start on long-term release pills that could replace daily medication

Switching daily pills for drugs that can be taken just once a week or month could transform the lives of people with conditions ranging from schizophrenia to opioid addiction, and those taking contraceptive pills, say researchers.

- Nicola Davis

In 2019 scientists announced the development of a new type of contraceptive pill – a swallowable capsule, tested in pigs, that dissolves in the stomach to release a six-armed polymer structure that delivers synthetic hormones for three weeks before falling apart and leaving the body.

Lyndra, the company that is developing the technology, said it is planning to start phase one trials in humans towards the end of this year, with the project backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.

The technology is being applied to a host of other medications, including Ivermectin for eradicating malaria. A once-a-week pill containing risperidone, an antipsychotic used for people with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, is to go into clinical trials this year, the company said, and is expected to be submitted for approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by the end of next year, with approval hoped for by the end of 2024.

Trish Hurter, the chief executive of Lyndra, said reducing the frequency for certain pills can bring health and economic benefits.

“In schizophrenia, specifically, adherence is a huge driver of outcomes,” she said. “When people aren’t maintained on stable therapy, that’s when they have relapses and hospitalisations.”