Yes / The design of new functional crystalline materials requires an understanding of the factors that control salt and co-crystal formation. These states often only differ in the location of the proton and are influenced by chemical and crystallographic factors. The interaction between a carboxylic acid and a pyridine is a frequently used supramolecular synthon in crystal engineering which can exist as either a co-crystal (CO2H⋯N) or salt (CO2−⋯HN+). The results of a Cambridge Structure Database search indicate that the nature of the functional groups on the pyridine play a stronger role in selection of the phase than those of the acid. However, the nature of the local hydrogen bonding of the interaction also adjusts the potential for proton transfer. This was demonstrated by ab initio modelling of the energy landscape for binary and ternary co-crystals by inclusion of varying components of the local environment.

Yes / The creation of ternary multi-component crystals through the introduction of 18-crown-6 to direct the hydrogen-bonding motifs of the other molecular components was investigated for 3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid (3,5-dnba) with 4-aminobenzoic acid (4-aba). The creation of a binary complex between 18-crown-6 and 4-aba (C12H24O6·2C7H7NO2)2 and a ternary salt between 3,5-dnba, 18-crown-6 and 4-aba (C12H24O6·C7H8NO2+·C7H3N2O6−·C7H4N2O6) were confirmed by single-crystal structure determination. In both structures, the amino molecules bind to the crown ether through N—H...O hydrogen bonds, leaving available only a single O atom site on the crown with restricted geometry to potentially accept a hydrogen bond from 3,5-dnba. While 3,5-dnba and 4-aba form a binary co-crystal containing neutral molecules, the shape-selective nature of 18-crown-6 preferentially binds protonated amino molecules, thereby leading to the formation of the ternary salt, despite the predicted low concentration of the protonated species in the crystallizing solution. Thus, through the choice of crown ether it may be possible to control both location and nature of the available bonding sites for the designed creation of ternary crystals.

Yes / The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs mefenamic acid (MFA) and tolfenamic acid (TFA) have a close resemblance in their molecular scaffold, whereby a methyl group in MFA is substituted by a chloro group in TFA. The present study demonstrates the isomorphous nature of these compounds in a series of their multicomponent solids. Furthermore, the unique nature of MFA and TFA has been demonstrated while excavating their alternate solid forms in that, by varying the drug (MFA or TFA) to coformer [4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP)] stoichiometric ratio, both drugs have produced three different types of multicomponent crystals, viz. salt (1:1; API to coformer ratio), salt hydrate (1:1:1) and cocrystal salt (2:1). Interestingly, as anticipated from the close similarity of TFA and MFA structures, these multicomponent solids have shown an isomorphous relation. A thorough characterization and structural investigation of the new multicomponent forms of MFA and TFA revealed their similarity in terms of space group and structural packing with isomorphic nature among the pairs. Herein, the experimental results are generalized in a broader perspective for predictably identifying any possible new forms of comparable compounds by mapping their crystal structure landscapes. The utility of such an approach is evident from the identification of polymorph VI of TFA from hetero-seeding with isomorphous MFA form I from acetone–methanol (1:1) solution. That aside, a pseudopolymorph of TFA with dimethylformamide (DMF) was obtained, which also has some structural similarity to that of the solvate MFA:DMF. These new isostructural pairs are discussed in the context of solid form screening using structural landscape similarity / Department of Science and Technology (DST/SJF/CSA-02/2014–15); Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain for seed corn funding (2018–19); INSPIRE fellowship from Department of Science and Technology, Government of India; IISER-Kolkata (instrumental facilities and fellowships)

Magister Pharmaceuticae - MPharm / The objective was to prepare new solid phases, i.e. co-crystal forms, of two sulfa antibiotic drugs (sulfamethoxazole and sulfasalazine) with trimethoprim and fourteen potential co-formers with GRAS status. Trimethoprim was chosen for its synergistic effects with both sulfa drugs and the other co-formers were selected in an attempt to improve the physicochemical properties of the antibiotics. A variety of co-crystallization techniques, including solvent assisted grinding, slow evaporation, slurry method and solidification of the melt were used to obtain these results. From these methods, three new solid phases were successfully isolated for the sulfamethoxazole antibiotic, viz. sulfamethoxazole-benzoic anhydride (SMZ-BAN) co-crystal by the slurry method, amorphous sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim (SMZ-TMP) form by solidification of the melt and amorphous sulfamethoxazole-oxalic acid (SMZ-OA) by slow evaporation. For the sulfasalazine antibiotic, co-crystallization experimentation produced, sulfasalazine-trimethoprim salt (SSZ-TMPs) by slow evaporation, sulfasalazine-trimethoprim co-crystal (SSZ-TMP) by solvent assisted grinding and sulfasalazine-nicotinamide co-crystal (SSZ-NC) by solidification of the melt. Of these six compounds subjected to single crystal X-ray analysis, only one of their structures was elucidated i.e. the salt, SSZ-TMPs. Different techniques that were used to assess the thermal behaviour of the products included hot stage microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. FTIR provided information on the purity of the compounds and the suggested host-guest interaction sites. X-ray powder diffraction supported the determination of the new phase comparative to the parent compounds. Finally dissolution testing was carried out for successful candidates with encouraging recommendations for future work.

Yes / The major concern of the physical and chemical instability of effervescent products during manufacturing and storage is addressed through a co-crystallization strategy. Citric acid (CA) and sodium bicarbonate (SBC) are the essential components of effervescent products. CA is hygroscopic and led to an uncontrollable autocatalytic chain reaction with SBC in the presence of a small amount of moisture, causing product instability. The acid···amide dimer bond and layered structure of the citric acid-nicotinamide co-crystal restricts interaction of moisture with CA, making it nonhygroscopic, and improves the stability of effervescent products. The comparative study of effervescent products containing CA in its free form and as a co-crystal suggests a significant advantage of the use of co-crystal in effervescent products. This finding is supported by the mechanistic understanding developed through GAB and Y&N models obtained from moisture sorption data along with the computational investigations into moisture interactions with different crystal surfaces.

No / In this feature article we will focus on the issues relating to the crystal growth of co-crystals, with a particular emphasis on drug development. The initial focus of this perspective is on the relevant literature examples that may be able to inform our understanding with regards co-crystal crystallisation and the allied supramolecular concepts. The second part of this perspective contains selected examples from our own work, which add to the literature perspective. Topics include; nucleation templates, in situ synchrotron XRD studies, solid-state synthesis through mixing and screening strategies.

Yes / Thermal ink-jet printing (TIJP) is shown to be a rapid (minutes) method with which to prepare pharmaceutical co-crystals; co-crystals were identified in all cases where the co-formers could be dissolved in water and/or water/ethanol solutions.

Yes / The creation of multi-component crystals between chiral and achiral components has gained increased interest in recent years. In many cases the overall crystal structure is similar with the creation of a pseudo-inversion centre in the enantiopure case. This allows for the formation of solid solutions between the two extremes, which may have applications within chiral resolution. Utilising a combination of database mining, computational prediction and experimental screening, the frequency of formation for such materials has been investigated showing that for co-crystals this occurs more frequently than for salts, though there is a limited number of samples to draw structural conclusions. Computational modelling indicates the prediction of such systems can be challenging due to the similarities in energy of many crystal structures, so development of tools to design such systems is required to fully utilise these concepts. / The Deanship of Scientific Research at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University through the Fast-track Research Funding Program.

Yes / The growth of cocrystalline phases continues to expand as a key area of crystal engineering research. Understanding the phase behavior of the material and controlling the crystalline form of the material from a solution-based route can be aided by the construction of a ternary phase diagram for the system. A range of methods exist for this process which display a variety of costs and time to achieve the final diagram. The application of quantitative NMR (qNMR) to this problem offers a fast analysis method to directly determine the solution composition of all species (coformers and solvent) and is demonstrated to successfully allow the construction of ternary diagrams with and without a cocrystal phase being formed for systems with high and low solubility.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Chemistry / Christer B. Aakeroy / Supramolecular synthesis relies upon the creative and rational use of the common intermolecular forces and a proper understanding of these forces is critical for design and assembly of molecular building blocks into extended networks. The strength of seven substituted pyridines as hydrogen-bond acceptors was probed using a series of fifteen mono/dicarboxylic acids to demonstrate the interrelationship between the charge on the substrate and its ability to form co-crystals/salts. The higher charge in the acceptor led to proton transfer (100% yield) from the hydrogen bond donor to give a salt, whereas the lower charge led to co-crystals. This specificity observed for small molecules was extended to an investigation of selectivity in ditopic molecules. A series of nineteen hydrogen-bond donors, including fifteen carboxylic acids and four cyanoximes, were tested for binding preferences against ten ditopic ligands with variable charges. The overall supramolecular yield of 82% (9/11) proved a high degree of reliability in terms of best acceptor/donor approach, hence establishing the efficiency of the calculated charges as a guideline for molecular recognition processes. Solubility and thermal properties of pharmaceutical drug mimics were altered via formation of co-crystals/salts. The ligands and their co-crystals/salts with five even-chain dicarboxylic acids were synthesized and their comparative solubility in pure water and in pH 6.8 buffer solution measured. Solubility enhancement to a degree of 9x is observed for pharmaceutical drug haloperidol, whereas decrease in solubility down to 81% is achieved for 2-amino-5-(3-pyridyl)pyrimidine (which has agrochemical significance). Also the thermal and solubility behavior of these co-crystals were shown to reflect the properties of their parent co-crystallizing agents, allowing for a modulation of physical properties. Finally, the specificity and selectivity of the intermolecular interactions observed for small molecules were applied in the synthesis of hydrogen and halogen-bonded capsules. Several resorcinarene-based cavitands were synthesized and their upper rim decorated with acetamidopyridyl, aminopyrazinyl, 3-pyridyl, and 4-pyridyl moieties with hydrogen and halogen-bonding potentials. A homomeric hydrogen-bonded capsule was formed with self-assembly of acetamidoethynylcavitand via N-H···O=C interactions, whereas a heteromeric halogen-bonded capsule, the very first of its kind, was formed with N···I halogen-bonded interaction between 3-pyridylcavitand and tetrafluoroiodo-substituted calixarene.