| AVS 56th International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Inkjet Technology: Printing, Materials Processing, and Microfluidics Fundamentals Topical Conference | Thursday Sessions |
| Session IJ+BI+MN+SE+AS-ThM |
| Session: | Inkjet Technology: Novel and Emerging Applications |
| Presenter: | N. Scoutaris, Nottingham University, UK |
| Authors: | N. Scoutaris, Nottingham University, UK C.J. Roberts, Nottingham University, UK M.R. Alexander, Nottingham University, UK P.R. Gellert, AstraZeneca, UK |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
The potential application of ink-jet printing technology as a novel drug formulation technique is examined in this study. Since the inkjet printing technology offers high accuracy of fluids, a success implementation of the project can offer the capability to produce precise amounts of medicines, tailored for each patient.
Felodipine, an antihypertensive drug, was used as an example of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), and polyvinyl pirrolidone (PVP) as an excipient. These were dissolved at various ratios in a mixture of ethanol and DMSO (95/5). Using a piezoelectric driven dispenser, picolitre size droplets of the solutions were dispensed onto suitable hydrophobic substrates. The dried products were characterized using AFM, localized nano-thermal analysis and high resolution vibrational spectroscopy (ATR-IR and Raman). Results indicate intimate mixing of the micro-dot API and excipient mixtures. Specifically, ATR-IR confirmed the interaction of felodipine and PVP by means of hydrogen bonding. Nanothermal analysis indicates a single glass transition point which is lowered as the API concentration increases. Finally, confocal Raman microscopy mapping on single droplets allows the visualization of the homogeneous distribution of the drug. These results are a promising first step to ink jet printing of pharmaceuticals.
References
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2. Karavas, E., et al., Investigation of the release mechanism of a sparingly water-soluble drug from solid dispersions in hydrophilic carriers based on physical state of drug, particle size distribution and drug-polymer interactions. European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, 2007. 66(3): p. 334-347.
3. Karavas, E., et al., Combining SEM, TEM, and micro-Raman techniques to differentiate between the amorphous molecular level dispersions and nanodispersions of a poorly water-soluble drug within a polymer matrix. International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 2007. 340(1-2): p. 76-83.