Enabling oral drugs: smarter ways to make medicines that dissolve and get absorbed
Official title: Enabling oral drug formulations: mechanistic studies and modeling
Funded at University of Connecticut Storrs · NIH-11333787 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant aims to develop smarter formulation methods to help drugs with poor solubility or low absorption reach patients more reliably.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Connecticut Storrs NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Storrs-Mansfield, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2024 |
| Project end | May 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $402,500 |
| NIH project number | 5R35GM155235-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11333787 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Patients with conditions requiring oral medications that currently have poor absorption or solubility could benefit from improved formulations.
✕Less likely to help
This grant does not involve direct patient participation or trials at this stage, so some patients may not directly benefit during the research phase.
What this research studies
If funded, this work would focus on understanding how to design oral drug formulations so poorly soluble medicines can be absorbed more predictably. Researchers will study the physics of particle behavior in the body and build models to predict how drugs dissolve and enter the bloodstream. The project plans to combine laboratory experiments with computational modeling to guide formulation choices, potentially reducing the need for costly animal testing. The ultimate goal is to speed up bringing effective, affordable medicines to patients who need them.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could benefit from more reliable oral medicines with better bioavailability and lower development costs.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work in enabling formulations has shown that rational design and modeling can improve oral bioavailability, though challenges remain for certain drug properties.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Connecticut Storrs
Storrs-Mansfield, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Li, Na — University of Connecticut Storrs
- Study coordinator: Li, Na
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.