Revolutionizing Medicine: The 12th Annual Oral Peptides & Macrocyclics Conference

Cambridge Healthtech Institute’s 12th Annual Oral Peptides & Macrocyclics conference, happening on April 3-4, 2024 in San Diego in California, and will explore the frontiers of drug discovery, focusing on the design and discovery of beyond rule-of-five (bRo5) molecules. These larger molecules, particularly oral peptides and macrocyclic compounds, hold promise for targeting protein-protein interactions (PPIs) more effectively than traditional small molecule drugs. They are uniquely suited for penetrating cells and reaching intracellular PPI targets, often implicated in diseases.

This year, the conference will highlight the emerging role of oral peptides, which are typically macrocyclic or constrained, in expanding the chemical space available to medicinal, computational, and synthetic chemists. This expansion allows for the discovery of molecules capable of binding larger surfaces with greater stability, offering new avenues for “large small molecule” drug modalities.

Keynote speakers and industry experts will present on topics such as the use of encoded libraries and machine learning for macrocyclic screening, high-throughput encoded peptide discovery, and the design of DNA-encoded macrocyclic libraries. Additionally, discussions will cover the prediction of cyclic peptide structures via molecular dynamics and machine learning, and the potential of explainable AI in designing functional peptide libraries.

The event will also feature in-person breakout sessions for collaborative discussion and networking, focusing on various aspects of peptide and macrocyclic drug discovery. Topics will include computational peptide design, peptide rigidity and its impact on potency and permeability, and formulation-based strategies for oral uptake.

For more information and registration, you can visit the Drug Discovery Chemistry website.