Preparation and characterization of sterile and freeze-dried sub-200 nm nanoparticles

The feasibility of producing sterile and freeze-dried polyester nanoparticles was investigated. Various poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) and poly(D,L-lactide) were selected as biodegradable polymers. Using the salting-out procedure, process parameters were optimized to obtain sub-200 nm particles. After purification, the nanoparticle suspensions containing different lyoprotectants were sterilized by filtration. Freeze-drying was performed using vials covered with 0.22 microm membrane filters in order to preserve the suspensions from bacterial contamination. Sterility was assessed on the final product according to pharmacopoeial requirements using the membrane filtration method. With all polymers tested, sub-200 nm particles could be obtained. Nanoparticles with a size as low as 102 nm were prepared with good reproducibility and narrow size distribution. Upon freeze-drying, it appeared that complete redispersion of all types of polyester nanoparticles could be obtained in presence of the lyoprotectants tested such as saccharides while aggregation was observed without lyoprotectant. Sterility testing showed no microbial contamination indicating that sterile nanoparticulate formulations have been achieved.