Technology

XenoPort's proprietary Transported Prodrug™ technology utilizes the body's natural mechanisms for actively transporting nutrients through cellular barriers. Our scientists identify specific, high-capacity nutrient transporter proteins found in cells that line the gastrointestinal, or GI, tract. Using this information, they chemically modify the structure of a suboptimal drug to create a Transported Prodrug™ that utilizes these transporters to gain efficient absorption into the bloodstream through active transport. Once in the blood stream, our Transported Prodrugs are engineered to split apart, releasing the drug and natural substances that generally have well-studied, favorable safety characteristics.

Our Transported Prodrug programs are focused on identifying transporter proteins and potential product candidates that improve oral bioavailability.

XenoPort's Transported Prodrug approach differs from the more conventional approach to drug absorption that typically relies on a drug's ability to passively diffuse through the intestinal wall to enter the bloodstream and reach the targeted tissue.

"There are hundreds of transporters in the human body that vary in the types of molecules they recognize and their localization to certain cells and tissue barriers. When we create a new drug candidate, there is not a "one size fits all" solution with our Transported Prodrug technology. We combine the knowledge of a drug's chemical structure with our understanding of the substrate preferences of transporter proteins to create a new chemical entity with a superior pharmacokinetic profile, and the potential to be more efficacious than the original drug."

—Mark Gallop, Senior Vice President of Research