Mette Klitgaard Jensen

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Mette Klitgaard is a PhD student associated with the Physiological Pharmaceutics group at the Department of Pharmacy, University of Copenhagen. The PhD project is entitled "Is intestinal mucus an important factor in solubilization and absorption of poorly soluble drugs?" and is funded by Lundbeckfonden.

Primary fields of research

Designing and developing in vitro models to evaluate drug performance after oral administration.

Current research

Currently, the mucus lining the small intestine is considered a barrier for absorption, especially for protein drugs. We are taking an orthogonal approach to this, by hypothesizing that the mucus layer also has very good drug solubilizing properties, which is important for absorption of poorly soluble drugs. Thus, for the first time, we will include the mucus in the simulation of dissolution and absorption studies of drugs, to improve the understanding and simulation of the absorption process.

Predictive in vitro models, simulating the human gastro-intestinal tract, are needed for a rational development of new effective oral drugs and bioactives. Existing in vitro models are hampered by lack of a complete understanding of drug absorption mechanisms and especially the role mucus is playing in the process. The development of predictive in vitro models will reduce the need for animal studies and will also enable a more rational design of clinical studies.