Development of particulate pulse-release formulations and their mathematical description

Film coatings for oral pulsatile release

Pulsatile delivery is generally intended as a release of the active ingredient that is delayed for a programmable period of time to meet particular chronotherapeutic needs and, in the case of oral administration, also target distal intestinal regions, such as the colon. Most oral pulsatile delivery platforms consist in coated formulations wherein the applied polymer serves as the release-controlling agent. When exposed to aqueous media, the coating initially performs as a protective barrier and, subsequently, undergoes a timely failure based on diverse mechanisms depending on its physico-chemical and formulation characteristics. Indeed, it may be ruptured because of the gradual expansion of the core, swell and/or erode due to the glassy-rubbery polymer transition or become permeable thus allowing the drug molecules to diffuse outwards. Otherwise, when the coating is a semipermeable membrane provided with one or more orifices, the drug is released through the latter as a result of an osmotic water influx. The vast majority of pulsatile delivery systems described so far have been prepared by spray-coating, which offers important versatility and feasibility advantages over other techniques such as press- and dip-coating. In the present article, the design, manufacturing and performance of spray-coated pulsatile delivery platforms is thus reviewed.

Ammonio Polymethacrylate-Coated Diltiazem: Drug Release from Single Pellets, Media Dependence, and Swelling Behavior

Drug release from single pellets was measured on an easily assembled flow-through system. Despite heterogeneity between pellets, the sum of the individual results resembled drug release from an ensemble. A typical pellet displayed a long lag followed by rapid release. Heterogeneity appeared to result from substrate properties rather than coating uniformity. Swelling behavior in acid and buffer was measured by dynamic image analysis and related to drug release. Drug release was sensitive to dissolution temperature but swelling was not. A description of the drug release process was proposed.

Development and Mathematical Simulation of Theophylline Pulsatile Release Tablets

Theophylline pulsatile release tablets consisting of a fast-swelling core with a water-insoluble ethylcellulose were developed. Effects of coating material, the amount of the plasticizer, subcoating, the type of the disintegrant, and coating level on the release profiles were investigated. Results showed that ethylcellulose was the best candidate polymer for pulsatile release tablets. Rupture time increased with increasing the amount of the plasticizer, but 15% plasticizer provided the best release profiles. Tablets with Methocel E50 as subcoating was most optimal in order to achieve a long lag time and followed by a rapid release. The lag time of tablets containing different disintegrants increased in the following order: croscarmellose (Ac-Di-Sol) < sodium starch glycolate (Explotab) < low-substituted hydroxypropyl cellulose (L-HPC) < crospovidone (Kollidon CL). And the rupture time increased with higher coating level. A mathematical model was presented to predict the lag time prior to rupture. Results of the water uptake experiment were used to estimate the apparent diffusion coefficient of the coating tablets. The prediction of the lag time based on the presented model is in good agreement with the experimental results.

Oral pulsatile drug delivery systems

In the field of modified release, there has been a growing interest in pulsatile delivery, which generally refers to the liberation of drugs following a programmable lag phase from the time of administration. In particular, the recent literature reports on a variety of pulsatile release systems intended for the oral route, which have been recognised as potentially beneficial to the chronotherapy of widespread diseases, such as bronchial asthma or angina pectoris, with mainly night or early morning symptoms. In addition, time-dependent colon delivery may also represent an appealing related application. The delayed liberation of orally administered drugs has been achieved through a range of formulation approaches, including single- or multiple-unit systems provided with release-controlling coatings, capsular devices and osmotic pumps. Based on these premises, the aim of this review is to outline the rational and prominent design strategies behind oral pulsatile delivery.