Understanding where biological treatments travel in the body and how they behave once they get there is key to predicting their safety, effectiveness, and overall success.
In this webinar, scientists from Pfizer and Pharmaron explore how radiolabeled studies using tritium, iodine-125, and advanced autoradiography techniques can reveal the true distribution pathways of biotherapeutics across different organs.
Through a series of case studies, the speakers look at immunomodulatory peptides and recombinant proteins, sharing practical insights into selecting the right radiolabels, evaluating biodistribution profiles, and navigating common challenges such as protein size, target engagement, and complex tissue environments.
This webinar is will be ideal for scientists working in DMPK, biologics, PK/PD, and drug development, as well as anybody interested in learning more about biological drug behavior.
What you will learn
Attendees will develop a deeper understanding of:
- The role of biodistribution in biologics
- How factors like size, target binding, and pharmacology shape distribution
- Radiolabeling strategies for biologics
- Best practices for working with tritium (3H) and iodine-125 (125I)
- How to select the most suitable isotope, avoid common design pitfalls, and minimize impact on biological activity
- Making sense of biodistribution and PK data
- Case studies that feature peptides and recombinant proteins
- Insights into areas such as immune cell uptake, organ-specific distribution, and placental transfer
About the moderator
Kate Webbley – Team Leader, Metabolism Radiolabelled Sciences at Pharmaron
Kate Webbley completed her undergraduate degree in biomolecular and medicinal chemistry at Strathclyde University in Glasgow before pursuing a postgraduate MSc in drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics at Kings College London.
She has worked at the Pharmaron Rushden location for 19 years, rising from research scientist to team leader in a variety of fields ranging from small molecule in vivo to in vitro and, eventually, large molecule research.
About the speakers
Rob Webster – Vice President, Pharmacokinetics, Dynamics, and Drug Metabolism at Pfizer
Rob Webster is the Vice President of Pfizer's Pharmacokinetics, Dynamics, and Drug Metabolism Department in Andover. He joined the company in 1989. His primary job in Pfizer's early research was to assist medicinal chemists in developing new medications that would have good exposure in the body.
Webster focuses on both early compound discovery and later-stage development for a wide range of therapeutic candidates, including small molecules, proteins, peptides, LNP, GTx, and so on.
Over the years, his scientific interests have ranged from biotherapeutics to PK and PD prediction, small molecule discovery, QT prolongation, and more.
Webster graduated from Liverpool Polytechnic in 1989 with a BSc. in biochemistry. He then worked in the Pfizer labs in Sandwich, UK, before moving to Pfizer in Massachusetts, US. He is the author or coauthor of more than 50 research articles.
Thomas Gregson – Associate Director, Radiolabeled Sciences at Pharmaron
Tom Gregson earned a Master's in Chemistry from Sheffield University before pursuing a Ph.D. in natural product synthesis at the University of Manchester under Professor Jim Thomas.
He spent almost 20 years working in radiolabeled synthesis, first at Sanofi-Aventis and then at Covance, before joining Pharmaron. As Associate Director at the Cardiff site, he has vast experience in radiolabeling a variety of compounds using Carbon-14 and Tritium.
Stephen Harris – Metabolism Team Leader at Pharmaron
Steve Harris has over 35 years of experience working in DMPK units, starting with Roche and Pfizer, and focusing mostly on the pre-clinical development of radiolabeled small compounds.
Since joining Pharmaron in 2010, he has directed the group in charge of radiolabeled ADME investigations using biologics ranging from peptides and nucleic acids to recombinant proteins, mAbs, fusion proteins, and ADCs, retiring in 2023. Since then, he has worked as a biological and imaging consultant.