Pharma Solutions by Dr. Ajay

The International Pharmaceutical Excipient Council (IPEC) classified pharmaceutical excipients based on safety data into two classes namely ‘new chemical excipients’ and ‘established excipients. The excipient class ‘new chemical excipients’ can be sub-divided into ‘modified excipients’ (i.e., existing excipients that are modified with respect to purity and/or physical properties such as particle size), ‘co-processed excipients’ (i.e., two or more existing excipients which are formulated into a new excipient with physical properties that cannot be obtained by a simple physical mixture and is produced through processes such as spray drying) and ‘novel excipients’ (i.e., new chemical entities used for the first time in a drug product which may include known excipients that are chemically modified). Development of new excipient entities and their evaluation is a costly procedure; modification of existing excipients is very easy, more economical and less time consuming. The development of ...

  Deficiencies of micronutrients, essentially vitamins and minerals, have mainly cause several illnesses, especially in children and women worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have adopted four main strategies for improving dietary intake: food fortification, micronutrient supplementation, nutrition education, and disease control measures. The fortification of staple foods is one strategy that has a proven history in improving dietary diversity and effectively decreasing micronutrient deficiencies. Fortified foods are those that have nutrients added to them that don’t naturally occur in the food. These foods are meant to improve nutrition and add health benefits. Thus, flours, especially wheat, maize and rice, are a popular and common food in the world's populations diet and are gaining considerable attention as a suitable vehicle for micronutrient fortification. Commercial food fortification adds trace amou...

Powders for injection (PIs) are a popular parenteral dosage form for drugs ( active molecules). Because of their instability in the aqueous environment, PIs cannot be marketed as ready-to-use injectables. Instead, they are marketed as dry powders to be reconstituted with a suitable vehicle just before administration. The final form after reconstitution may be either a solution or a suspension. Typical molecules in this category include ß-lactam antibiotics, cephalosporins, and acyclovir. A few ready-to-use infusion products are marketed as frozen solutions in plastic bags for these molecules. However, the low temperature required for their shipment and storage makes these products an unviable option, especially in countries in which a cold chain from manufacturing to the point of consumption is difficult to establish. PIs are relatively simple with respect to formulation and process development. However, their performance and stability are critically affected by a number of parameters....

Sustained - release (SR) matrices are designed to release a drug slowly over an extended period of time. Formulations must be robust to ensure drug release over time and avoid dose-dumping. Innovator companies consider sustained-release oral dosage forms as a means to maximize drug efficacy, minimize the potential for adverse events, address clinical considerations such as dosing frequency, and respond to patient preference for simplified medication regimens for chronic disease. Key growth drivers in the rapidly expanding sector of sustained-release oral drug delivery include selection of excipients, enabling technologies, trends in patient preference and increasing physician comfort with the ability of prolonged drug release to deliver reliable blood levels. Excipients play a central role in the drug development process, in the formulation of sustained- release oral dosage forms and in their administration. The intended function of an excipient is to guarantee the required physico...

Capsule-in-capsule supplements are manufactured using specialty liquid-filled hard-capsule technology (LFHC). The capsule-in-capsule form allows for better release profiles that more precisely meet a customer’s target release. With liquid-filled hard-capsule technology, you have the option of immediate, extended, pulsed, or delayed release, unlike that of other forms. This allows for delivery of supplement or OTC compounds to two different regions of the GI tract, and even delivery to the colon with the addition of enteric coatings. This single oral dosage delivery system, which involves inserting a smaller pre-filled capsule containing either a liquid or semi-liquid formulation   into a larger liquid-filled capsule, offers numerous possibilities and a broad range of formulation and design options. New compounds in the pharmaceutical pipeline are increasingly complex and typically requires enabling technologies to address challenges such as solubility, permeability, stability,...