New 3-in-1 pill releases Parkinson’s drugs over a 24-hour period

A new pill containing three drugs used to treat Parkinson’s disease has been developed by scientists at Nanyang Technology University (NTU) in Singapore. The pill is designed to release the medication slowly over a 24-hour period, which can reduce the number of times multiple Parkinson’s tablets have to be administered, benefitting patients and carers.

The new technology uses a patented micro-encapsulation process and is being tested in animal models.

Professor Ivy Ng, group CEO of SingHealth said: “This disease can be treated, but with three types of drugs that have to be taken three times a day. This can prove difficult and challenging for our elderly patients. NTU materials science engineers are working with our (National) Neuroscience Institute to look at how nano-medicine can package these three drugs into one pill that needs to be taken maybe just once a day, slowly releasing the medication over 24 to 48 hours.”