Determination of solid-state acidity of chitin-metal silicates and their effect on the degradation of cephalosporin antibiotics

Preparation of Sustained Release Formulation of Verapamil Hydrochloride Using Ion Exchange Resins

The purpose of this investigation was to formulate and evaluate the interaction between cation exchange resins and verapamil hydrochloride. The uptake studies were conducted using the rotating bottle apparatus. The Langmuir-like equation was applied to the experimental data and the maximum drug loading was determined from the Langmuir-like parameters. The drug-resin complexes were evaluated using XRD, SEM, and particle size analysis. Release studies were performed using USP dissolution apparatus 2. The resin with the lowest percentage of cross-linking had the highest uptake capacity. The percent increase in particle size due to complexation was found to be associated with drug loading; the highest drug loading had the highest increase in particle size. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the resins and the drug-resin complexes showed that they were both amorphous. The maximum drug release was approximately 40% when conventional dissolution testing was used. Results showed that sink conditions could not be maintained using conventional dissolution methods. Maximum drug release increased dramatically by increasing the volume of samples withdrawn and fresh dissolution medium added. Excellent correlation was obtained between sample volume and drug release rate with an R-value of 0.988. Particle diffusion-controlled model and film diffusion-controlled model were both applied to the experimental data. The results indicated that the rate-limiting step is the diffusion of the exchanging cations through the liquid film. The modified release formulation was prepared successfully and correlated very well with the USP monograph for verapamil hydrochloride extended release capsules.

Influence of Chitin Source and Polymorphism on Powder Compression and Compaction: Application in Drug Delivery

The objective of the research reported herein is to compare the compaction properties of three different chitin extracts from the organisms most used in the seafood industry; namely crabs, shrimps and squids. The foregoing is examined in relation to their polymorphic forms as well as compression and compaction behavior. Chitin extracted from crabs and shrimps exhibits the α-polymorphic form whilst chitin extracted from squid pins displays a β-polymorphic form. These polymorphs were characterized using FTIR, X-ray powder diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Pore diameter and volume differ between the two polymorphic powder forms. The β form is smaller in pore diameter and volume. Scanning electron microscopy of the two polymorphic forms shows clear variation in the arrangement of chitin layers such that the α form appears more condensed due to the anti-parallel arrangement of the polymer chains. True, bulk and tapped densities of these polymorphs and their mixtures indicated poor flowability. Nevertheless, compression and compaction properties obtained by applying Heckle and Kawakita analyses indicated that both polymorphs are able to be compacted with differences in the extent of compaction. Chitin compacts, regardless of their origin, showed a very high crushing strength with very fast dissolution which makes them suitable for use as fast mouth dissolving tablets. Moreover, when different chitin powders are granulated with two model drugs, i.e., metronidazole and spiramycin they yielded high crushing strength and their dissolution profiles were in accordance with compendial requirements. It is concluded that the source of chitin extraction is as important as the polymorphic form when compression and compaction of chitin powders is carried out.

Effect of Moisture Content of Chitin-Calcium Silicate on Rate of Degradation of Cefotaxime Sodium

Assessment of incompatibilities between active pharmaceutical ingredient and pharmaceutical excipients is an important part of preformulation studies. The objective of the work was to assess the effect of moisture content of chitin calcium silicate of two size ranges (two specific surface areas) on the rate of degradation of cefotaxime sodium. The surface area of the excipient was determined using adsorption method. The effect of moisture content of a given size range on the stability of the drug was determined at 40°C in the solid state. The moisture content was determined at the beginning and the end of the kinetic study using TGA. The degradation in solution was studied for comparison. Increasing the moisture content of the excipient of size range 63-180 μm (surface area 7.2 m²/g) from 3.88 to 8.06% increased the rate of degradation of the drug more than two times (from 0.0317 to 0.0718 h^-1). While an opposite trend was observed for the excipient of size range < 63 μm (surface area 55.4 m²/g). The rate of degradation at moisture content < 3% was 0.4547 h^-1, almost two times higher than that (0.2594 h^-1) at moisture content of 8.54%, and the degradation in solid state at both moisture contents was higher than that in solution (0.0871 h^-1). In conclusion, the rate of degradation in solid should be studied taking into consideration the specific surface area and moisture content of the excipient at the storage condition and it may be higher than that in solution.

Surface acidity and solid-state compatibility of excipients with an acid-sensitive API: case study of atorvastatin calcium

The objectives of this study were to measure the apparent surface acidity of common excipients and to correlate the acidity with the chemical stability of an acid-sensitive active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in binary API-excipient powder mixtures. The acidity of 26 solid excipients was determined by two methods, (i) by measuring the pH of their suspensions or solutions and (ii) the pH equivalent (pHeq) measured via ionization of probe molecules deposited on the surface of the excipients. The chemical stability of an API, atorvastatin calcium (AC), in mixtures with the excipients was evaluated by monitoring the appearance of an acid-induced degradant, atorvastatin lactone, under accelerated storage conditions. The extent of lactone formation in AC-excipient mixtures was presented as a function of either solution/suspension pH or pHeq. No lactone formation was observed in mixtures with excipients having pHeq > 6, while the lactone levels were pronounced (> 0.6% after 6 weeks at 50°C/20% RH) with excipients exhibiting pHeq < 3. The three pHeq regions (> 6, 3-6, and < 3) were consistent with the reported solution pH-stability profile of AC. In contrast to the pHeq scale, lactone formation did not show any clear trend when plotted as a function of the suspension/solution pH. Two mechanisms to explain the discrepancy between the suspension/solution pH and the chemical stability data were discussed. Acidic excipients, which are expected to be incompatible with an acid-sensitive API, were identified based on pHeq measurements. The incompatibility prediction was confirmed in the chemical stability tests using AC as an example of an acid-sensitive API.

Chitin and chitosan as direct compression excipients in pharmaceutical applications

Despite the numerous uses of chitin and chitosan as new functional materials of high potential in various fields, they are still behind several directly compressible excipients already dominating pharmaceutical applications. There are, however, new attempts to exploit chitin and chitosan in co-processing techniques that provide a product with potential to act as a direct compression (DC) excipient. This review outlines the compression properties of chitin and chitosan in the context of DC pharmaceutical applications.

Apparent basicities of the surfaces characterizing the dominant crystal habits of distinct polymorphic forms of 4-aminosulfonamide

A new approach for estimating local basicities/acidities of groups exposed on crystal surfaces was formulated and validated. The model, constructed within a quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) framework, allowed the expression of the protonic properties of amine and sulfonamide groups as functions of simple molecular descriptors of geometric types. This enabled the application of a QM/MM approach for the structural optimization of SNM molecules located on the surfaces of the dominant crystal habits. The obtained pKa values were used for classification of the protonic properties of four p-aminosulfonamide (SNM) polymorphs. The computed distributions of the surface pK a values suggested that, for all polymorphs, the amino group has statistically the same proton-accepting ability on the crystal surface as in bulk water solution. Although sulfonamide groups on the crystal surface-especially those distributed on β- and γ-dominant faces-seem to be more acidic compared to bulk water solution, the pK a values are statistically indistinguishable irrespective of the morphology. This suggests that experimentally observed differences in the perichromic properties of SNM polymorphs do not arise from local pH changes, Thus, apparent local basicities are to be relaed to structural similarity of SNM surfaces and thymol blue conformers anabling direct interactions.