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Fabrication of Extracellular Matrix-derived Foams and Microcarriers as Tissue-specific Cell Culture and Delivery Platforms
Published on: April 11, 2017
Bespoke hydroxypropyl methylcellulose-based solid foams loaded with poorly soluble drugs by tunable modular design.
Wuzhong He1, Huiling Mu1, Natalja Genina1
1University of Copenhagen, Department of Pharmacy, Universitetsparken 2, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
Carbohydrate Polymers
|March 30, 2025
Summary
A new tunable modular design (TMD) enables precise dosing and tailored drug release for poorly soluble drugs using hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) foams. This approach combines freeze-drying and inkjet printing for customized pharmaceutical products.
Area of Science:
- Pharmaceutical Technology
- Materials Science
- Drug Delivery Systems
Background:
- Poorly water-soluble drugs present challenges in achieving accurate dosing and controlled release.
- Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) is a versatile excipient for developing oral solid dosage forms.
- Existing methods for formulating poorly soluble drugs often lack precise dose control and tailored release profiles.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce a novel tunable modular design (TMD) for precise dose tailoring and drug release control of poorly water-soluble drugs.
- To develop HPMC-based solid foam modules capable of incorporating active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) with high uniformity.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of combining freeze-drying and inkjet printing for customized drug delivery.
Main Methods:
- Freeze-drying of aqueous HPMC-based gels to create porous, sturdy modules containing specific API doses.
- Inkjet printing of API-loaded co-solvent systems onto HPMC modules for fine-tuning drug dosage with high precision.
- Utilizing carvedilol (CAR) as a model poorly water-soluble API, with co-solvent systems to enhance solubility for printing.
- Modulating CAR release rates by altering HPMC composition (content and grade) and module dimensions.
Main Results:
- Successfully developed HPMC-based modules with uniform API distribution and tailored drug content.
- Achieved precise dose adjustment of carvedilol in 0.1 mg increments via inkjet printing.
- Demonstrated controlled release profiles of carvedilol by modifying HPMC characteristics and module geometry.
- Overcame solubility limitations of carvedilol through optimized co-solvent systems for printable inks.
Conclusions:
- The tunable modular design (TMD) offers a flexible platform for creating personalized pharmaceutical products with poorly water-soluble APIs.
- This approach enables precise dose control and customized drug release kinetics, enhancing therapeutic efficacy.
- TMD is suitable for incorporating hydrophilic cellulose ethers like HPMC and poorly soluble APIs into high-quality drug delivery systems.
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