Luke R. Schenck

Luke Schenck started in pharmaceutical development at Merck in 2001, gaining scale up expertise with conventional granulation and compression processing routes. He later became involved in Merck’s initial hot melt extrusion (HME) development efforts including equipment design, process definition and scale up to achieve Merck’s first PhIII HME delivery. In 2008, he moved to chemical process development and commercialization. Here he worked on the process qualification and filing for the enzymatic transamination route for Januvia and process definition, filing and qualification for Belsomra. The primary motivation for the move to drug substance space was to explore opportunities at the drug product interface. This initially involved working to identify HME routes to devolatilize API solvates, and additive mediated crystallization efforts as a means to alter morphology, particle size and form.
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Since 2015, Luke has been leading the Particle Engineering Lab, identifying new routes to manage challenging API properties. The group’s focus includes bottom up routes to generate nano to micron sized neat API for oral, parenteral and respiratory delivery routes. Additionally, the Particle Engineering Lab has identified approaches to deliver multiparticulate systems for both improved physical properties and solubility enhancement