No / A novel, green, and continuous method for solid-state polymorphic transformation of artemisinin by high temperature extrusion has recently been demonstrated. This communication describes attempts to understand the mechanisms causing phase transformation during the extrusion process. Polymorphic transformation was investigated using hot stage microscopy and a model shear cell. At high temperature, phase transformation from orthorhombic to the triclinic crystals was observed through a vapor phase. Under mechanical stress, the crystalline structure was disrupted continuously, exposing new surfaces and accelerating the transformation process.

Thesis (M.S.)--Rochester Institute of Technology, 1981. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 56-57).

L’amélioration de la solubilité des principes actifs peu solubles est devenue l’un des principaux challenges de l’industrie pharmaceutique. Bien que présentant une structure chimique potentiellement idéale pour interagir avec la cible, elles échouent dans l’efficacité in vivo : après administration, elles ne peuvent se dissoudre dans les milieux aqueux biologiques et par conséquent ne peuvent être transportées sur leur site d’action pour atteindre la concentration efficace, amenant à un échec thérapeutique. De nombreuses stratégies très intéressantes ont été proposées pour surmonter ce sérieux obstacle.Les dispersions solides sont étudiées depuis plus de 40 ans et ont conduit à de très nombreuses publications mais jusqu’à aujourd’hui peu de produits ont été commercialisés principalement pour des raisons de stabilité physico-chimique. Celles-ci ont pour but de présenter le principe actif sous sa forme amorphe : cette dernière présentant un état d’énergie plus élevé et par conséquent une solubilisation facilitée. Dans le même temps, le système doit rester stable durant le stockage, ainsi la recristallisation ou tout autre changement entraînant une modification du profil de libération doivent être évités. Différentes techniques de production peuvent être utilisées pour préparer ce genre de systèmes polymériques tels que l’extrusion en phase chauffante ou l’atomisation-séchage. Le principal objectif de ce travail a été d’améliorer la solubilité des principes actifs peu solubles par formation de dispersions solides utilisant les deux techniques les plus utilisées : l’extrusion en phase chauffante et l’atomisation-séchage. Dans cette étude, le kétoprofène a été incorporé dans des matrices polymériques hydrophiles pour augmenter sa solubilité apparente. Les deux techniques ont été employées et l’Eudragit® E a été considéré comme une matrice intéressante pour plusieurs raisons : c’est un polymère thermoplastique, offrant une stabilité thermique suffisante pour l’extrusion en phase chauffante, il se dissout rapidement en milieu acide et peut interagir avec les groupements acides de par ses nombreux azotes ternaires. Des mélanges binaires « principe actif – Eudragit®E » ainsi que des mélanges ternaires « principe actif – Eudragit®E - PVP », « principe actif – Eudragit®E - PVPVA », « principe actif – Eudragit®E - HPMC » ont été étudiés et caractérisés Les systèmes obtenus ont été caractérisés par macro/microscopie optique, microscopie électronique à balayage, diffraction laser, analyse calorimétrique différentielle modulée, diffraction des rayons X et l’étude du profil de libération in vitro en milieu acide (HCl 0.1M). Les libérations ont été intentionnellement réalisées en condition « non sink » afin d'évaluer le potentiel des formulations à produire des solutions sur-saturées et la durée de ces dernières. Tous les systèmes présentent un profil de libération du kétoprofène beaucoup plus rapide comparé au produit commercial et à la dissolution du principe actif pur. De plus, des solutions sur-saturées peuvent être obtenues et restent stables au moins 2 h. Cependant, en fonction des polymères utilisés, différents profils de libération ont été obtenus indiquant que l’utilisation de matrices polymériques pour l’accélération de la libération de principes actifs peu solubles peut être très complexe puisqu’elle n’est pas seulement influencée par la composition du système mais aussi potentiellement par leur structure interne et notamment par l’homogénéité/hétérogénéité de la distribution des excipients.[...]. / Poor aqueous solubility has become a property of numerous new drug candidates causing major concern. Despite a potentially ideal chemical structure allowing for interaction with the target, these substances fail to be effective in vivo: upon administration, they cannot dissolve sufficiently in the aqueous fluids of the body and, thus, cannot be transported to their site of action to reach therapeutically effective concentrations. Various interesting strategies have been proposed to overcome this crucial hurdle.Solid dispersions have been studied for more than 40 years and lead to numerous interesting research articles. However, today, only a few products have reached the market principally due to problems with the physico-chemical stability. The idea is to transform the crystalline raw material into a physical state having a greater energy in order to increase the driving force for drug dissolution. At the same time, the system should be stable during long term storage, thus, re-crystallization or other system changes, resulting in altered drug release rates, must be avoided. Different manufacturing techniques can be used to prepare such polymeric drug delivery systems, including hot-melt extrusion and spray-drying.The main objective of this work has been to improve drug solubility by forming solid dispersions using the two most employed techniques: hot-melt extrusion and spray-drying. In this study ketoprofen has been incorporated into hydrophilic polymeric matrices to increase its apparent aqueous solubility. Both techniques have been applied and Eudragit® E has been considered to be an interesting matrix former in this case, as it is thermoplastic, provides sufficient thermal stability for hot-melt extrusion, rapidly dissolves at acidic pH and can interact with acidic drugs due to its multiple tertiary ammonium groups. Binary “drug-Eudragit®E” as well as ternary “drug-Eudragit®E-PVP”, “drug-Eudragit®E-PVPVA”, “drug-Eudragit®E-HPMC” combinations were investigated and characterized using X-ray diffraction, mDSC, SEM, optical macro/microscopy, and drug release measurements in 0.1 M HCl before and after storage. Drug release has been intentionally monitored under non-sink conditions, in order to evaluate the potential of the formulations to provide super-saturated solutions and the life-time of the latter. In all cases ketoprofen release was much faster compared to a commercially available product and the dissolution of the drug powder (as received). More important, super-saturated solutions could have been obtained, which were stable for at least 2 h. [...]

Os fármacos pertencentes às classes II e IV do sistema de classificação biofarmacêutica são aqueles sujeitos a problemas relacionados com a sua biodisponibilidade. Um dos procedimentos utilizados para melhorar a solubilidade de fármacos pouco solúveis é a granulação com materiais lipídicos ou cerosos. Para aumentar a solubilidade da carbamazepina, fármaco de classe II, ou seja, que apresenta baixa solubilidade e alta permeabilidade, inicialmente esta foi associada com os excipientes Gelucire® 50/13 ou Polietilenoglicol 6000, através de uma mistura física ou dispersão sólida. Estas associações foram submetidas a procedimentos analíticos como DSC, Infravermelho, Difração de Raios-X e teste de solubilidade em água. Nas misturas físicas a carbamazepina permaneceu estável, porém nas dispersões sólidas houve o aparecimento de polimorfismo. No entanto estes polimorfos também apresentam atividade terapêutica. As misturas físicas e as dispersões sólidas foram submetidas ao teste de solubilidade e as amostras que continham Gelucire® 50/13 aumentaram em torno de 15 vezes a solubilidade da carbamazepina em água, enquanto que as amostras que continham Polietilenoglicol 6000 aumentaram em torno de 14 vezes. Optou-se pela utilização do PEG 6000 devido à melhor compatibilidade deste com o equipamento utilizado. A granulação por Hot Melt em leito fluidizado foi realizada após alguns ensaios de fluidodinâmica utilizando a lactose spray dried como substrato. Durante os experimentos as condições do processo permaneceram estáveis e a curva característica foi típica de leito fluidizado. Os granulados foram obtidos utilizando o planejamento fatorial Box Behnken cujos fatores estudados foram: vazão de dispersão sólida, quantidade de dispersão sólida e pressão de atomização e em seguida caracterizados e avaliados. A maioria das propriedades físicas e farmacotécnicas dos granulados foi dependente da quantidade de dispersão sólida. A utilização do método de granulação por fusão em leito fluidizado melhorou o perfil de dissolução das cápsulas contendo os granulados, sendo que com o maior nível da quantidade de dispersão sólida houve um aumento significante na quantidade de carbamazepina liberada. Os resultados mostram que esta técnica é relevante para preparar dispersões sólidas com fármacos que apresentam baixa biodisponibilidade devido a sua baixa solubilidade. / Drugs belonging to classes II and IV in the biopharmaceutical classification system are those having bioavailability problems. Granulation with waxy lipids is one of the procedures used to improve the solubility of poorly soluble drugs. To increase the solubility of carbamazepine a drug of class II that has low solubility but high permeability, its association with the excipients Gelucire® 50/13 or Polyethylene 6000, was done by physical mixtures or solid dispersions. The associations were subjected to analytical procedures such as Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), infrared light, X-ray diffraction and tests of solubility in water. In physical mixtures carbamazepine remained stable, but showed different polymorphic forms in solid dispersions. However, the polymorphic forms were also therapeutically active.Solubility tests of physical mixtures and solid dispersions indicated that samples containing Gelucire ® 50 / 13 increased the solubility of carbamazepine in water about 15 times, while the ones containing Polyethylene glycol 6000 had an increase of about 14 times. PEG 6000 was the chosen carrier due to its better compatibility with the equipment used.Fluid dynamic tests using spray dried lactose as a substrate were preliminary to the granulation experiments in the fluidised bed. The process conditions remained stable during the experiments and the characteristic curve tracing was typical of fluidised beds. Granules were obtained in experiments that followed a Box Behnken factorial design, where the factors studied were: flow rate of the solid dispersion, amount of solid dispersion and atomization pressure .Most physical and technical granule properties were dependent on the quantity of solid dispersion. The method of granulation by hot melt in a fluidised bed improved the solubility profile of carbamazepine in granule containing capsules.Granules containing the highest amount of solid dispersion showed a significant increase in the amount of carbamazepine released. The results proved that this technique is relevant to the preparation of solid dispersions with low bioavailable drugs due to their poor solubility.

A granulação através do uso de dispersões sólidas é um recurso que pode ser utilizado para aumentar a solubilidade de fármacos pouco solúveis, como no processo de Hot Melt Granulation (HMG). Este processo pode ser realizado utilizando-se o aparelho de leito fluidizado, com a atomização de uma dispersão fundida de carreadores solúveis com fármacos pouco solúveis sobre um substrato efetuando sua granulação. Essa é uma alternativa em relação aos métodos de granulação tradicionais, sendo vantajoso por não utilizar solvente. O objetivo deste trabalho foi realizar a granulação de piroxicam por HMG em leito fluidizado com polietilenoglicol (PEG) na forma de dispersão fundida, usando lactose spray dried como substrato com o intuito de aumentar a solubilidade do fármaco que é pouco solúvel em água, classificado como classe 2 (baixa solubilidade e alta permeabilidade) no Sistema de Classificação Biofarmacêutica. Foi realizada também a avaliação de misturas físicas e dispersões sólidas dos excipientes e do fármaco para obter informações de pré-formulação. O processo de granulação em leito fluidizado foi realizado através de um planejamento fatorial do tipo Box-Behnken, no qual as variáveis de operação carga de substrato, vazão do ar do bico de atomização e altura do bico de atomização foram variadas para a caracterização do processo e o estudo do efeito das variáveis do processo sobre as propriedades dos grânulos também foi realizado. Os grânulos obtidos foram caracterizados pela avaliação das propriedades farmacotécnicas, doseamento, distribuição granulométrica e também pela determinação das propriedades físico-químicas através de análises de calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC), espectroscopia no infravermelho e difração de raios-X. O perfil de dissolução de cápsulas contendo os grânulos também foi determinado. De acordo com as análises realizadas, não ocorreram interações nas misturas físicas e dispersões sólidas, nem nos granulados obtidos. Em relação aos grânulos, o resultado da avaliação farmacotécnica demonstrou que a maioria apresentou valores de fluxo excelente e bom. Através da distribuição granulométrica e das imagens dos grânulos obtidas por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (M.E.V.), pode-se observar que ocorreu a aglomeração das partículas de lactose pela atomização da dispersão de piroxicam e PEG 4000. Na avaliação do perfil de dissolução, os grânulos mostraram-se com uma solubilidade superior ao piroxicam isolado, sendo a granulação por Hot Melt em leito fluidizado um processo vantajoso em relação aos métodos atuais de granulação. / Granulation through solid dispersions may be employed to increase drug solubility as in the Hot Melt Granulation (HMG). Fluidized beds are used in the procedure, which by atomizing a melted dispersion of soluble carriers and low solubility drugs on a substrate produces the desired granulation. This is an advantageous alternative to traditional granulation methods since solvents are not involved. The objective of this study was to granulate the low solubility drug, piroxicam, by HMG in a fluidized bed with polyethylene glycol (PEG) in the form of a melted dispersion and dried lactose spray as the substrate. The drug has low aqueous solubility and is classified as Class 2 (low solubility and high intestinal permeability) in the Biopharmaceutical Classification System (BCS). Physical mixtures and solid dispersions of excipients and drug were previously tested as to obtain pre-formulation data. A factorial planning of the Box-Behnken type was used for the granulation in a fluidized bed, with the operation variables as substrate load, air stream velocity through the atomizing outlet and its height being varied to characterize the process and to verify their effects on the granule properties. Characterization of the granules was by evaluation of pharmacotechnical properties, dosage of active principle, granule size distribution and also by physicochemical analyses. These were by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Interactions in the physical mixtures, solid dispersions and granules were not detected. The dissolution profile of capsules containing the granules was determined. Evaluation results showed that most granules had excellent to good flux properties. Granulometric distribution and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images indicated agglomeration of lactose particles by the atomization of the piroxicamPEG dispersion. Evaluating the granule dissolution profiles it was shown that they were more soluble than piroxicam only. These results suggest that granulation by Hot Melt in a fluidized bed is process with advantages when compared to methods currently used.

Os fármacos pertencentes às classes II e IV do sistema de classificação biofarmacêutica são aqueles sujeitos a problemas relacionados com a sua biodisponibilidade. Um dos procedimentos utilizados para melhorar a solubilidade de fármacos pouco solúveis é a granulação com materiais lipídicos ou cerosos. Para aumentar a solubilidade da carbamazepina, fármaco de classe II, ou seja, que apresenta baixa solubilidade e alta permeabilidade, inicialmente esta foi associada com os excipientes Gelucire® 50/13 ou Polietilenoglicol 6000, através de uma mistura física ou dispersão sólida. Estas associações foram submetidas a procedimentos analíticos como DSC, Infravermelho, Difração de Raios-X e teste de solubilidade em água. Nas misturas físicas a carbamazepina permaneceu estável, porém nas dispersões sólidas houve o aparecimento de polimorfismo. No entanto estes polimorfos também apresentam atividade terapêutica. As misturas físicas e as dispersões sólidas foram submetidas ao teste de solubilidade e as amostras que continham Gelucire® 50/13 aumentaram em torno de 15 vezes a solubilidade da carbamazepina em água, enquanto que as amostras que continham Polietilenoglicol 6000 aumentaram em torno de 14 vezes. Optou-se pela utilização do PEG 6000 devido à melhor compatibilidade deste com o equipamento utilizado. A granulação por Hot Melt em leito fluidizado foi realizada após alguns ensaios de fluidodinâmica utilizando a lactose spray dried como substrato. Durante os experimentos as condições do processo permaneceram estáveis e a curva característica foi típica de leito fluidizado. Os granulados foram obtidos utilizando o planejamento fatorial Box Behnken cujos fatores estudados foram: vazão de dispersão sólida, quantidade de dispersão sólida e pressão de atomização e em seguida caracterizados e avaliados. A maioria das propriedades físicas e farmacotécnicas dos granulados foi dependente da quantidade de dispersão sólida. A utilização do método de granulação por fusão em leito fluidizado melhorou o perfil de dissolução das cápsulas contendo os granulados, sendo que com o maior nível da quantidade de dispersão sólida houve um aumento significante na quantidade de carbamazepina liberada. Os resultados mostram que esta técnica é relevante para preparar dispersões sólidas com fármacos que apresentam baixa biodisponibilidade devido a sua baixa solubilidade. / Drugs belonging to classes II and IV in the biopharmaceutical classification system are those having bioavailability problems. Granulation with waxy lipids is one of the procedures used to improve the solubility of poorly soluble drugs. To increase the solubility of carbamazepine a drug of class II that has low solubility but high permeability, its association with the excipients Gelucire® 50/13 or Polyethylene 6000, was done by physical mixtures or solid dispersions. The associations were subjected to analytical procedures such as Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), infrared light, X-ray diffraction and tests of solubility in water. In physical mixtures carbamazepine remained stable, but showed different polymorphic forms in solid dispersions. However, the polymorphic forms were also therapeutically active.Solubility tests of physical mixtures and solid dispersions indicated that samples containing Gelucire ® 50 / 13 increased the solubility of carbamazepine in water about 15 times, while the ones containing Polyethylene glycol 6000 had an increase of about 14 times. PEG 6000 was the chosen carrier due to its better compatibility with the equipment used.Fluid dynamic tests using spray dried lactose as a substrate were preliminary to the granulation experiments in the fluidised bed. The process conditions remained stable during the experiments and the characteristic curve tracing was typical of fluidised beds. Granules were obtained in experiments that followed a Box Behnken factorial design, where the factors studied were: flow rate of the solid dispersion, amount of solid dispersion and atomization pressure .Most physical and technical granule properties were dependent on the quantity of solid dispersion. The method of granulation by hot melt in a fluidised bed improved the solubility profile of carbamazepine in granule containing capsules.Granules containing the highest amount of solid dispersion showed a significant increase in the amount of carbamazepine released. The results proved that this technique is relevant to the preparation of solid dispersions with low bioavailable drugs due to their poor solubility.

A granulação através do uso de dispersões sólidas é um recurso que pode ser utilizado para aumentar a solubilidade de fármacos pouco solúveis, como no processo de Hot Melt Granulation (HMG). Este processo pode ser realizado utilizando-se o aparelho de leito fluidizado, com a atomização de uma dispersão fundida de carreadores solúveis com fármacos pouco solúveis sobre um substrato efetuando sua granulação. Essa é uma alternativa em relação aos métodos de granulação tradicionais, sendo vantajoso por não utilizar solvente. O objetivo deste trabalho foi realizar a granulação de piroxicam por HMG em leito fluidizado com polietilenoglicol (PEG) na forma de dispersão fundida, usando lactose spray dried como substrato com o intuito de aumentar a solubilidade do fármaco que é pouco solúvel em água, classificado como classe 2 (baixa solubilidade e alta permeabilidade) no Sistema de Classificação Biofarmacêutica. Foi realizada também a avaliação de misturas físicas e dispersões sólidas dos excipientes e do fármaco para obter informações de pré-formulação. O processo de granulação em leito fluidizado foi realizado através de um planejamento fatorial do tipo Box-Behnken, no qual as variáveis de operação carga de substrato, vazão do ar do bico de atomização e altura do bico de atomização foram variadas para a caracterização do processo e o estudo do efeito das variáveis do processo sobre as propriedades dos grânulos também foi realizado. Os grânulos obtidos foram caracterizados pela avaliação das propriedades farmacotécnicas, doseamento, distribuição granulométrica e também pela determinação das propriedades físico-químicas através de análises de calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC), espectroscopia no infravermelho e difração de raios-X. O perfil de dissolução de cápsulas contendo os grânulos também foi determinado. De acordo com as análises realizadas, não ocorreram interações nas misturas físicas e dispersões sólidas, nem nos granulados obtidos. Em relação aos grânulos, o resultado da avaliação farmacotécnica demonstrou que a maioria apresentou valores de fluxo excelente e bom. Através da distribuição granulométrica e das imagens dos grânulos obtidas por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (M.E.V.), pode-se observar que ocorreu a aglomeração das partículas de lactose pela atomização da dispersão de piroxicam e PEG 4000. Na avaliação do perfil de dissolução, os grânulos mostraram-se com uma solubilidade superior ao piroxicam isolado, sendo a granulação por Hot Melt em leito fluidizado um processo vantajoso em relação aos métodos atuais de granulação. / Granulation through solid dispersions may be employed to increase drug solubility as in the Hot Melt Granulation (HMG). Fluidized beds are used in the procedure, which by atomizing a melted dispersion of soluble carriers and low solubility drugs on a substrate produces the desired granulation. This is an advantageous alternative to traditional granulation methods since solvents are not involved. The objective of this study was to granulate the low solubility drug, piroxicam, by HMG in a fluidized bed with polyethylene glycol (PEG) in the form of a melted dispersion and dried lactose spray as the substrate. The drug has low aqueous solubility and is classified as Class 2 (low solubility and high intestinal permeability) in the Biopharmaceutical Classification System (BCS). Physical mixtures and solid dispersions of excipients and drug were previously tested as to obtain pre-formulation data. A factorial planning of the Box-Behnken type was used for the granulation in a fluidized bed, with the operation variables as substrate load, air stream velocity through the atomizing outlet and its height being varied to characterize the process and to verify their effects on the granule properties. Characterization of the granules was by evaluation of pharmacotechnical properties, dosage of active principle, granule size distribution and also by physicochemical analyses. These were by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. Interactions in the physical mixtures, solid dispersions and granules were not detected. The dissolution profile of capsules containing the granules was determined. Evaluation results showed that most granules had excellent to good flux properties. Granulometric distribution and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images indicated agglomeration of lactose particles by the atomization of the piroxicamPEG dispersion. Evaluating the granule dissolution profiles it was shown that they were more soluble than piroxicam only. These results suggest that granulation by Hot Melt in a fluidized bed is process with advantages when compared to methods currently used.

With the advance of combinational chemistry and high throughput screening, an increasing number of pharmacologically active compounds have been discovered and developed. A significant proportion of those drug candidates are poorly water-soluble, thereby exhibiting limited absorption profiles after oral administration. Therefore, advanced formulation and processing technologies are demanded in order to overcome the biopharmaceutical limits of poorly water-soluble drugs. A number of pharmaceutical technologies have been investigated to address the solubility issue, such as particle size reduction, salt formation, lipid-based formulation, and solubilization. Within the scope of this dissertation, two of the pharmaceutical technologies were investigated names thin film freezing and hot-melt extrusion. The overall goal of the research was to improve the oral bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drugs by producing amorphous solid dispersion systems with enhanced wetting, dissolution, and supersaturation properties. In Chapter 1, the pharmaceutical applications of hot-melt extrusion technology was reviewed. The formulation and process development of hot-melt extrusion was discussed. In Chapter 2, we investigated the use of thin film freezing technology combined with template emulsion system to improve the dissolution and wetting properties of itraconazole (ITZ). The effects of formulation variables (i.e., the selection of polymeric excipients and surfactants) and process variables (i.e., template emulsion system versus cosolvent system) were studied. The physic-chemical properties and dissolution properties of thin film freezing compositions were characterized extensively. In Chapter 3 and Chapter 4, we investigated hot-melt extrusion technology for producing amorphous solid dispersion systems and improving the dissolution and absorption of ITZ. Formulation variables (i.e., the selection of hydrophilic additives, the selection of polymeric carriers) and process variables (i.e., the screw configuration of hot-melt extrusion systems) were investigated in order to optimize the performance of ITZ amorphous solid dispersions. The effects of formulation and process variables on the properties of hot-melt extrusion compositions were investigated. In vivo studies revealed that the oral administration of advanced ITZ amorphous solid dispersion formulations rendered enhanced oral bioavailability of the drug in the rat model. Results indicated that novel formulation and processing technologies are viable approaches for enhancing the oral absorption of poorly water-soluble drugs. / text

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1996. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 201-208). Also available on the Internet.

The use of solid dispersions to formulate poorly water soluble drugs is a growing field in the pharmaceutical sciences. Hot-melt extrusion is a common method for producing dispersions. However, bench-top extruders require large amounts of powder to run and are inappropriate for early formulation screens. Plastic and glass syringes are readily available in most laboratories. 250 mg of drug-polymer blend is placed in a plastic syringe body that has the tip covered with a bent needle. The syringe is heated for 5 minutes and the extrudate is pushed through the syringe. Extrudates are characterized by differential scanning calorimetry and powder x-ray diffraction. Acetaminophen, griseofulvin, indomethacin, salicylamide, and sulfamethoxazole extruded with polyvinylpyrrolidone K12 match or exceed the performance of solvent evaporated controls. Glass syringes can be used when polymers have processing ranges above the melting point of the plastic syringes. Syringe extrusion is effectively demonstrated as a rapid process for early formulation screening.