Peptide Synthesis and Drug Development: Exploring Progress and Potential

A special issue of Pharmaceuticals (ISSN 1424-8247). This special issue belongs to the section "Biopharmaceuticals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2025) | Viewed by 2979

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
2. Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 AZ, UK
Interests: peptide synthesis; separation; purification and greening; drug development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Al-Balqa Applied University, P.O. Box 206, Al-Salt 19117, Jordan
2. Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB), Berlin, Germany
Interests: solid-phase peptide synthesis; drug development

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Bachem AG, Hauptstrasse 144, 4416 Bubendorf, Switzerland
Interests: peptides; TIDES; drug discovery; medicinal chemistry; CMC; DMPK; marketed peptides

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Peptides are becoming increasingly important in a variety of fields such as drug development, immunology, sensing, and biomaterials. Because of their significant binding footprint with therapeutic targets, peptides are regarded as superior to their small-molecule counterparts. On the other hand, they encounter stability challenges due to enzymatic degradation. Ongoing efforts to harmonise interdisciplinary fields have been instrumental in improving the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles of peptides.

Out of roughly 102 approved peptides, since 1923, a mere 11 have been found to be suitable for oral administration. This represents only 3.4% of all approvals. While traditional chemical methods have been employed to improve peptide stability, there has been a lack of exploration into innovative chemistries.

For this Special Issue, we invite authors to present and/or review novel strategies for addressing this challenge. This includes introducing new synthetic methodologies and formulation strategies. Additionally, computational studies aimed at achieving the same objective are also encouraged.

Dr. Othman Al Musaimi
Dr. Da’san M.M. Jaradat
Dr. Vera D’Aloisio
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceuticals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • peptides
  • enzymatic degradation
  • drug discovery
  • formulation
  • draggability

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Review

38 pages, 4414 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in Peptide-Loaded PLGA Nanocarriers for Drug Delivery and Regenerative Medicine
by Hossein Omidian, Renae L. Wilson and Ana M. Castejon
Pharmaceuticals 2025, 18(1), 127; https://doi.org/10.3390/ph18010127 - 18 Jan 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2218
Abstract
Peptide-loaded poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanocarriers represent a transformative approach to addressing the challenges of peptide-based therapies. These systems offer solutions to peptide instability, enzymatic degradation, and limited bioavailability by providing controlled release, targeted delivery, and improved stability. The versatility of PLGA nanocarriers extends across [...] Read more.
Peptide-loaded poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) nanocarriers represent a transformative approach to addressing the challenges of peptide-based therapies. These systems offer solutions to peptide instability, enzymatic degradation, and limited bioavailability by providing controlled release, targeted delivery, and improved stability. The versatility of PLGA nanocarriers extends across therapeutic domains, including cancer therapy, neurodegenerative diseases, vaccine development, and regenerative medicine. Innovations in polymer chemistry, surface functionalization, and advanced manufacturing techniques, such as microfluidics and electrospraying, have further enhanced the efficacy and scalability of these systems. This review highlights the key physicochemical properties, preparation strategies, and proven benefits of peptide-loaded PLGA systems, emphasizing their role in sustained drug release, immune activation, and tissue regeneration. Despite remarkable progress, challenges such as production scalability, cost, and regulatory hurdles remain. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop