Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1527415
Respiratory Drug Delivery 2024 was a world-class conference. Delegates coming from 24 countries, and participating as speakers, workshop and poster presenters, exhibitors or engaged audience members, took part in one of the most memorable conferences in recent years. The delegate count was 550, all of them keen to catch up with colleagues, customers and friends in the pulmonary and nasal drug delivery community. 6 OctOber 2024 Inhalation CROSS-INDUSTRY Organizations RDD ® 2024 sets the bar for RDD Asia 2024 and RDD Europe 2025 The Organizers of the Respiratory Drug Delivery Conference Series RDD 2024 in review Respiratory Drug Delivery 2024 was a world-class conference. Del- egates coming from 24 countries, and participating as speakers, workshop and poster presenters, exhibitors or engaged audience members, took part in one of the most memorable conferences in recent years. e delegate count was 550, all of them keen to catch up with colleagues, customers and friends in the pulmonary and nasal drug delivery community. e business-friendly and spectac- ularly situated JW Marriott Starr Pass in Tucson, Arizona combined with perfect May weather to create formal and informal oppor- tunities for everyone to show off their latest science, products, ser- vices and ideas. Keynote speaker, Hadi T. Nia (Boston University) set the tone, presenting on the "Crystal Rib- cage," a novel platform to probe lung function in health and dis- ease, which was followed over the next four days by excellent presentations grouped into seven knowledge spaces: • e Path to Aerosol Surfactant • From Bench to Bedside: New Tools and Targets • Nasal Spotlight • Inhalation Innovation: Regula- tory Initiatives to Expand the Generic Marketplace • Aqueous Advances: Next Gen- eration Aqueous Products • High-Dose Lung Delivery: Changing the Treatment Para- digm for Lung Diseases • MDIs in Transition: A Regula- tory Roadmap to Market Knowledge spaces encompassed 22 invited speakers, 92 poster presenters, 12 workshop pre- senters and 70 exhibitors who work in these themed areas. is clustering of experts with shared interests made it easy for delegates to find exactly what they were looking for on the easy-to-nav- igate RDD conference website and in the combined poster and exhibition session. at mattered because, in the busy Tucson Ball- room, the energy level was high, propelled in part by 199 first- time RDD delegates, 15 new exhibitors and a steady stream of excellent lunches, recep- tions and networking breaks. Complimentary registration for graduate students with accepted posters was introduced at RDD 2024, allowing more of them to interact with seasoned aca- demics, industrial scientists, regulators, clinicians, consultants and potential employers. Representatives of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) delivered engaging presenta- tions on alternative approaches to bioequivalence and the FDA's perspectives on metered dose inhalers transitioning to low global warming potential propel- lants. Pharmaceutical industry speakers added their views, before joining forces to create an Explore with Experts panel to answer questions and hear audience opinions. is turned out to be a must-see session for delegates active in R&D, business develop- ment and management, and made a great ending to a productive and vibrant conference. John Patton (Kindeva Drug Deliv- ery), soldier, professor, co-founder of Inhale erapeutics and princi- pal in numerous other endeavors to commercialize inhaled pep- tide and protein delivery, was joined by his adorable family to receive the 2024 Charles G. iel Award. Virginia Commonwealth University's selection committee recognized his 40 years of work to improve respiratory health. Kinnari Arte, a PhD student at Purdue University, was selected as the recipient of the VCU RDD Peter R. Byron Graduate Student Award. e judges were impressed by her abstract and poster, which addressed the "Impact of L-leucine on Stability and Aerosol Perfor- mance of Dry Powder Protein Formulations."Arte's abstract now joins a library of more than 2,900 peer-reviewed and professionally produced papers, spanning 36 years, that remain available to all RDD 2024 conference delegates until June 30, 2025. e success of RDD 2024 was attributable to the participation and engagement of many people and organizations active in all fac- ets of drug delivery to the lungs and nose. Some volunteered time while others financially supported the conference, making it possi- ble to invite key opinion leaders to speak and graduate students to attend. We extend our thanks to all of them.