Proteins are an impactful class of therapeutics but can exhibit suboptimal therapeutic performance, arising from poor control over the timescale of clearance. Covalent PEGylation is one established strategy to extend circulation time but often at the cost of reduced activity and increased immunogenicity. Supramolecular PEGylation may afford similar benefits without necessitating that the protein be permanently modified with a polymer. Here, we show that insulin pharmacokinetics can be modulated by tuning the affinity-directed dynamics of a host–guest motif used to non-covalently endow insulin with a poly­(ethylene glycol) (PEG) chain. When administered subcutaneously, supramolecular PEGylation with higher binding affinities extends the time of total insulin exposure systemically. Pharmacokinetic modeling reveals that the extension in the duration of exposure arises specifically from decreased absorption from the subcutaneous depot governed directly by the affinity and dynamics of host–guest exchange. The lifetime of the supramolecular interaction thus dictates the rate of absorption, with negligible impact attributed to association of the PEG upon rapid dilution of the supramolecular complex in circulation. This modular approach to supramolecular PEGylation offers a powerful tool to tune protein pharmacokinetics in response to the needs of different disease applications.

Dual‐hormone replacement therapy with insulin and amylin in patients with type 1 diabetes has the potential to improve glucose management. Unfortunately, currently available formulations require burdensome separate injections at mealtimes and have disparate pharmacokinetics that do not mimic endogenous co‐secretion. Here, amphiphilic acrylamide copolymers are used to create a stable co‐formulation of monomeric insulin and amylin analogues (lispro and pramlintide) with synchronous pharmacokinetics and ultra‐rapid action. The co‐formulation is stable for over 16 h under stressed aging conditions, whereas commercial insulin lispro (Humalog) aggregates in 8 h. The faster pharmacokinetics of monomeric insulin in this co‐formulation result in increased insulin–pramlintide overlap of 75 ± 6% compared to only 47 ± 7% for separate injections. The co‐formulation results in similar delay in gastric emptying compared to pramlintide delivered separately. In a glucose challenge, in rats, the co‐formulation reduces deviation from baseline glucose compared to insulin only, or separate insulin and pramlintide administrations. Further, comparison of interspecies pharmacokinetics of monomeric pramlintide suggests that pharmacokinetics observed for the co‐formulation will be well preserved in future translation to humans. Together these results suggest that the co‐formulation has the potential to improve mealtime glucose management and reduce patient burden in the treatment of diabetes.

Dual-hormone replacement therapy with insulin and amylin in patients with type 1 diabetes has the potential to improve glucose management. Unfortunately, currently available formulations require burdensome separate injections at mealtimes and have disparate pharmacokinetics that do not mimic endogenous co-secretion. Here, we use amphiphilic acrylamide copolymers to create a stable co-formulation of monomeric insulin and amylin analogues (lispro and pramlintide) with synchronous pharmacokinetics and ultra-rapid action. The co-formulation is stable for over 16 hours under stressed aging conditions that cause a commercial "fast-acting" insulin formulation, Humalog, to aggregate in only 8 hours. The faster insulin pharmacokinetics achieved by delivery of monomeric insulin alongside pramlintide in this new co-formulation resulted in an increased overlap of 75 (s.e. = 6)% compared to only 47 (s.e. = 7)% for separate injections. Pramlintide delivered in the co-formulation resulted in similar delay in gastric emptying compared to pramlintide delivered separately, indicating pramlintide efficacy is maintained in the co-formulation. In a glucose challenge, rats receiving the co-formulation had reduced deviation from baseline glucose compared to treatment with either Humalog alone or separate injections of Humalog and pramlintide. Together these results suggest that a stable co-formulation of monomeric insulin and pramlintide has the potential to improve mealtime glucose management and reduce patient burden in the treatment of diabetes.