Project Summary
The delivery of small molecules, proteins and biological drugs, nucleic acids, and other molecular therapies
relies on the site of the disease-causing target within the body and is highly dependent on the ability to manage
solubility, stability, biodistribution, and pharmacokinetics of the drug. The Drug Carriers for Medicine and
Biology Gordon Research Conference (GRC) and its accompanying Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) provide
key platforms for discussion and dissemination of critical developments in the design of drug delivery systems
to meet the many unique challenges of this field. Addressing these issues requires an interdisciplinary
approach that engages researchers in basic biology and physiology, chemistry, and physics that inform design
as well as engineering and clinical perspectives. The GRC provides a unique environment that successfully
brings these groups together to discuss and debate fundamental questions about delivery and to share new
innovations in the field. The specific aims of this GRC/GRS are: 1) to provide a forum for discussion of the key
barriers to delivery and physiological understanding to inform carrier design, 2) to facilitate discussion in an
intellectually and culturally diverse environment, 3) to discuss new innovations and cutting-edge research, and
4) to create opportunities for early career investigators to build relationships and partnerships for professional
advancement. These aims will be accomplished via a carefully curated program describing cutting edge
research, elongated discussion sessions following each talk, four poster sessions to highlight research from
early career investigators, and social events to facilitate idea exchange and networking. The subtitle for the
2024 GRC in Drug Carriers for Medicine and Biology is: “Drug Carrier Design for Cell and Tissue Specific
Delivery”. Areas of focus include lipid nanoparticle-mediated delivery, therapeutic carriers for reproductive
health, biomaterials, immunoengineering-enabling delivery systems, nanosystems, cell and tissue-selective
delivery, and sensing. The GRS that precedes the GRC enables graduate students and postdoctoral
researchers to examine the field and address important questions from their own perspectives as early
investigators while also providing important networking opportunities. Speakers will be selected from research
trainees across a broad range of institutions and disciplines. The 2024 GRS theme, which is “Trafficking,
targeting, and tropism-based strategies for the localization of drug carriers”, will provide a forum for discussion
that connects ongoing laboratory research with issues that might ultimately determine translational success,
such as off-targeting. The GRS will also feature a plenary speaker who will provide a deep perspective on this
question and discussion leaders chosen to provide background and perspective during the discussions.
