Evaluation of Pazopanib Phase Behavior Following pH-Induced Supersaturation

Salts of weakly basic active pharmaceutical ingredients are widely used to improve aqueous solubility and/or dissolution rate. However, these compounds are prone to precipitation due to the lower solubility of the un-ionized species at the higher pH in the intestinal region, and this can result in poor and/or variable absorption. The goal of this study was to investigate the degree of supersaturation achieved following dissolution of different amounts of pazopanib hydrochloride at low pH, followed by rapid pH increase. Using pH solubility profiles, phase boundaries were defined for crystalline and amorphous free base forms. The resultant phase diagram was used to rationalize the observed supersaturation and phase behavior of pazopanib following pH adjustment. In the presence of a crystallization inhibitor, hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC), the degree of supersaturation was found to be very high, approximately 600-fold, at pH 6.5. At a dose equivalent to the clinical dose, the maximum free drug concentration observed at pH 6.5 was dictated by the amorphous solubility. Solutions that exceeded the amorphous solubility upon pH increase were found to undergo glass-liquid phase separations (GLPS) with the formation of amorphous colloidal drug-rich particles. Microscopic observations confirmed that HPMC delayed the appearance of pazopanib free base crystals. The phase behavior upon pH change is thus well predicted by the phase diagram, after taking into consideration the initial dose, the extent of supersaturation generated upon pH change, and the presence or absence of a crystallization inhibitor.