Therapeutic agent preparations for delivery into a lumen of the intestinal tract using a swallowable drug delivery device

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention provide swallowable devices, preparations and methods for delivering drugs and other therapeutic agents within the GI tract. Many embodiments provide a swallowable device for delivering the agents. Particular embodiments provide a swallowable device such as a capsule for delivering drugs into the intestinal wall or other GI lumen. Embodiments also provide various drug preparations that are configured to be contained within the capsule, advanced from the capsule into the intestinal wall and degrade to release the drug into the bloodstream to produce a therapeutic effect. The preparation can be operably coupled to delivery means having a first configuration where the preparation is contained in the capsule and a second configuration where the preparation is advanced out of the capsule into the intestinal wall. Embodiments of the invention are particularly useful for the delivery of drugs which are poorly absorbed, tolerated and/or degraded within the GI tract.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A therapeutic preparation comprising exenatide, the preparation adapted for insertion into an intestinal wall after oral ingestion, wherein upon insertion, the preparation releases exenatide into the blood stream from the intestinal wall to achieve a C max  in a shorter time period than a time period to achieve a C max  for an extravascularly injected dose of exenatide.