The impact of the length of alkyl chain on the behavior of benzyl alcohol homologues - the interplay between dispersive and hydrogen bond interactions.

In this work, we examined the effect of the length of alkyl chain attached to the benzene ring on the self-assembling phenomena for a series of phenyl alcohol (PhA) derivatives, from phenylmethanol (benzyl alcohol) to 7-phenyl-1-heptanol, by means of X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy (BDS) methods. XRD data in the reciprocal and real spaces showed a gradual increase in the local order with the elongation of the alkyl chain. However, the position and full width at half maximum of the main diffraction peak exhibited a non-systematic behavior. To better understand this fact, PhAs were subjected to FTIR spectroscopic studies. These investigations revealed that the association degree and the activation energy of dissociation increase as the alkyl chain length grows. On the other hand, BDS data showed a non-monotonic variation in the Kirkwood correlation factor with increasing length of the alkyl chain, indicating a competition between interactions of the non-polar and polar parts of the molecules in the studied PhAs. Finally, it was also found that the molar surface entropy for PhAs increases with the number of methylene groups, approaching values reported for alkanes, which indicates suppression of the surface order for PhAs with a long alkyl chain. This variability of the various parameters as a function of the length of the side chain shows that the interplay between soft interactions has a strong impact on the local structure and intra and intermolecular dynamics of the studied PhAs.

Is a Dissociation Process Underlying the Molecular Origin of the Debye Process in Monohydroxy Alcohols?

Herein, we investigated the molecular dynamics as well as intramolecular interactions in two primary monohydroxy alcohols (MA), 2-ethyl-1-hexanol (2EHOH) and n-butanol (nBOH), by means of broad-band dielectric (BDS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The modeling data obtained from dielectric studies within the Rubinstein approach [ Macromolecules 2013, 46, 7525-7541] originally developed to describe the dynamical properties of self-assembling macromolecules allowed us to calculate the energy barrier (Ea) of dissociation from the temperature dependences of relaxation times of Debye and structural processes. We found Ea ∼ 19.4 ± 0.8 and 5.3 ± 0.4 kJ/mol for the former and latter systems, respectively. On the other hand, FTIR data analyzed within the van't Hoff relationship yielded the energy barriers for dissociation Ea ∼ 20.3 ± 2.1 and 12.4 ± 1.6 kJ/mol for 2EHOH and nBOH, respectively. Hence, there was almost a perfect agreement between the values of Ea estimated from dielectric and FTIR studies for the 2EHOH, while some notable discrepancy was noted for the second alcohol. A quite significant difference in the activation barrier of dissociation indicates that there are probably supramolecular clusters of varying geometry or a ring-chain-like equilibrium is strongly affected in both alcohols. Nevertheless, our analysis showed that the association/dissociation processes undergoing within nanoassociates are one of the main factors underlying the molecular origin of the Debye process, supporting the transient chain model.

Influence of the Internal Structure and Intermolecular Interactions on the Correlation between Structural (α) and Secondary (ß-JG) Relaxation below the Glass Transition Temperature in Neat Probucol and Its Binary Mixtures with Modified Saccharides.

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) has been used to study the molecular dynamics and aging process in neat probucol (PRO) as well as its binary mixtures with selected acetylated saccharides. In particular, we applied the Casalini and Roland approach to determine structural relaxation times in the glassy state of the examined systems (so-called isostructural times, τiso). Next, using the calculated τiso, primitive relaxation times of the coupling model were obtained and compared to the experimental secondary ß (Johari-Goldstein (JG) type) relaxation times. Interestingly, it turned out that there is a correlation between the ß-JG and the structural (α)-relaxation processes below the glass transition temperature (T < Tg) in each investigated sample. This is a new observation compared to previous studies demonstrating that such a relationship exists only in the supercooled liquid state of neat PRO. Moreover, it was revealed that the stretching parameters obtained from the aging procedure are very close to the ones determined by fitting the dielectric data above the Tg with the use of the Kohlrausch-Williams-Watts function, indicating that the aging process is governed by the α-relaxation. Complementary Fourier transform infrared and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed us to find a possible reason for these findings. It was demonstrated that although there are very weak intermolecular interactions between PRO and modified saccharides, the intra- and intermolecular structure of PRO is practically unaffected by the presence of modified saccharides.

Does the molecular mobility and flexibility of the saccharide ring affect the glass-forming ability of naproxen in binary mixtures?

In this paper, we studied the impact of saccharides having a similar backbone but differing in the degree of freedom, local molecular mobility, flexibility of the ring and intermolecular interactions on the glass-forming ability (GFA) of naproxen (NAP) in binary mixtures. For this purpose, a series of methyl and acetyl derivatives of glucose (GLS) and anhydroglucose (anhGLS), as well as neat anhGLS have been used to produce homogeneous solid dispersions (SDs) of varying molar concentration of examined active pharmaceutical ingredient (API). Systematic measurements with the use of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Broadband Dielectric Spectroscopy (BDS) enabled us to determine the phase transitions, homogeneity and molecular mobility of the investigated binary mixtures as well as the impact of excipient on the crystallization tendency of NAP. It turned out that acetylated glucose (acGLS), one of the most mobile and flexible saccharides of all examined herein materials, is the best excipient enhancing the GFA of studied API. Although, it should be noted that upon storage at room temperature, we observed the recrystallization of NAP from binary mixtures. Interestingly, API always crystallized to the initial polymorphic form, as shown by X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigations. Finally, since additional measurements with the use of Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy clearly indicated that there are no significant differences in the intermolecular interactions in the systems composed of NAP and all examined saccharides, one can postulate that the mobility and ring flexibility of the matrix have, , the most important impact on the crystallization tendency of NAP upon cooling. Consequently, it seems that in some cases, more mobile/flexible matrices can be a much better choice to enhance the glass-forming ability of studied pharmaceutical.

Dramatic slowing down of the conformational equilibrium in the silyl derivative of glucose in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature.

The vitrification process is usually preceded by a significant change (around 6-8 decades) in the viscosity, structural relaxation times, or diffusion that occurs in a relatively small range of temperatures in fragile liquids. Along with this phenomenon, conformations of the molecules vary as well. In fact, this process is studied in bulk polymers and high molecular weight materials deposited in the form of thin films. On the other hand, spatial rearrangement of small glass formers in the supercooled liquid state has not been intensively investigated, so far. Herein, data obtained from measurements carried out using various experimental techniques on supercooled 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-(trimethylsilyl)-d-glucopyranose (S-GLU) have revealed that rotations of silyl moieties along with the deformation in the saccharide ring are significantly slowed down in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature (Tg). These intramolecular reorganizations affect the structural relaxation time, atomic pair distribution function, integrated intensity, as well as a number of bands and signals observed, respectively, in the Raman and NMR spectra. Data reported herein offer a better understanding of the conformational variation and time scale of this process in the complex and flexible molecules around the Tg.

Studying tautomerism in an important pharmaceutical glibenclamide confined in the thin nanometric layers.

The uniform thin films with variable thicknesses (d = 49, 120, 220 nm) of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) glibenclamide (GCM) was spin-coated and investigated using broadband dielectric, grazing incident FTIR spectroscopies, atomic force microscopy, and ellipsometry. Data analysis revealed that nanoconfined systems consist of a mixture of amide and imidic acid forms of this pharmaceutical, wherein the ratios of both tautomeric forms in the thin films were different with respect to the molten supercooled bulk system. Moreover, changes in the populations of glibenclamide tautomers, i.e. higher amide to imides ratio in the spatially restricted API with respect to the bulk sample, had a strong impact on the character of the proton transfer reaction. In this context, the kinetic curves constructed on the base of infrared data for the bulk system follow the sigmoidal shape, characteristic for the autocatalytic reaction, while results obtained for the confined samples provide exponential character and indicate first-order transformation. This allows hypothesizing that the autocatalytic nature of the tautomerism in the bulk sample is most likely related to the formation of the amide tautomers which further catalyze the progress of imide-amide transformation. Our results are the first studies showing that the change in the thickness of the film may affect the properties and isomerization kinetics in a pharmaceutical systems. Finally, our data open a new perspective for developing new drug delivery systems.

Studying molecular dynamics of the slow, structural, and secondary relaxation processes in series of substituted ibuprofens.

In this paper, the molecular dynamics of a series of ester derivatives of ibuprofen (IBU), in which the hydrogen atom from the hydroxyl group was substituted by the methyl, isopropyl, hexyl, and benzyl moieties, has been investigated using Broadband dielectric (BD), Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and Raman spectroscopies. We found that except for benzyl IBU (Ben-IBU), an additional process (slow mode, SM) appears in dielectric spectra in all examined compounds. It is worth noting that this relaxation process was observed for the first time in non-modified IBU (a Debye relaxation). According to suggestions by Affouard and Correia [J. Phys. Chem. B. 114, 11397 (2010)] as well as further studies by Adrjanowicz et al. [J. Chem. Phys. 139, 111103 (2013)] on Met-IBU, it was attributed to synperiplanar-antiperiplanar conformational changes within the molecule. Herein, we have shown that with an increasing molecular weight of the substituent, the relaxation times of the SM become longer and its activation energy significantly increases. Moreover, this new relaxation mode was found to be broader than a simple Debye relaxation in Iso-IBU and Hex-IBU. Additional complementary NMR studies indicated that either there is a significant slowdown of the rotation around the O=C-O-R moiety or this kind of movement is completely suppressed in the case of Ben-IBU. Therefore, the SM is not observed in the dielectric loss spectra of this compound. Finally, we carried out isothermal experiments on the samples which have a different thermal history. Interestingly, it turned out that the relaxation times of the structural processes are slightly shorter with respect to those obtained from temperature dependent measurements. This effect was the most prominent in the case of Hex-IBU, while for Ben-IBU, it was not observed at all. Additional time-dependent measurements revealed the ongoing equilibration manifested by the continuous shift of the structural process, until it finally reached its equilibrium position. Further Raman investigations showed that this effect may be related to the rotational/conformational equilibration of the long hexyl chains. Our results are the first ones demonstrating that the structural process is sensitive to the conformational equilibration occurring in the specific highly viscous systems.

Unexpected Crossover in the kinetics of mutarotation in the supercooled region: the role of H-bonds.

Intra- and intermolecular studies on the molten L-sorbose have been carried out at variable temperature conditions to determine the crosover temperature (T c ). In addition, isothermal time-dependent FTIR and Raman measurements were performed to probe the pace of mutarotation and activation energy of this reaction in the studied saccharide, which varied from 53-62 kJ/mol up to 177-192 kJ/mol below and above T c , respectively. To explain the change in activation barrier for the mutarotation a complementary analysis using difference FTIR spectra collected around T c = 365 K in the hydroxyl region has been done. It was found that the alteration of kinetic parameters and molecular dynamics around T c are strictly related to the variation in the strength of H-bonds which above T c are significantly weaken, increasing the freedom of rotation of functional groups and movement of individual molecules. That phenomenon most likely affects the proton transfer, underlying molecular mechanism of mutarotation, which may lead to the significant increase in activation barrier. The new insight into a molecular aspect of the mutarotation around T c has created an opportunity to better understanding the relationship between physics of condensed matter and the potential role of H-bonds dynamics on the progress of the chemical reaction in highly viscous systems.

A study on the progress of mutarotation above and below the Tg and the relationship between constant rates and structural relaxation times.

Comprehensive FTIR studies on the progress of mutarotation in d-fructose mixed with maltitol have been carried out over a wide range of temperatures, both above and below the glass transition temperature Tg. In addition to the analysis of single bands, we have developed a completely new approach considering the full spectral range to follow the overall progress of the reaction. We have found that at the calorimetric Tg, there is a clear change in the temperature dependence of constant rates. The activation barrier for mutarotation changes from around 59 kJ mol-1 (the supercooled state) to around 249 kJ mol-1 (the glassy state). This dramatic variation in the activation barrier is consistent with the change in the mechanism of this specific chemical conversion, as theoretically considered by Wlodarczyk et al. [Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2014, 16, 4694-4698]. Alternatively, it can also be connected to the change in the viscosity of the sample. Additionally, we investigated the relationship between constant rates (k) of mutarotation, structural relaxation times (τα), and dc conductivity (σdc) above and below the glass transition temperature. It was found that there was a linear correlation between all these quantities; they scale with various exponents changing at Tg. Our results also indicate that a single activation barrier might not be sufficient to describe the mutarotation process.

Studying the Crystallization of Various Polymorphic Forms of Nifedipine from Binary Mixtures with the Use of Different Experimental Techniques.

In this paper the crystal growth of nifedipine from pure system and from binary mixtures composed of active substance (API) and two acetylated disaccharides, maltose and sucrose (NIF-acMAL, NIF-acSUC, 5:1 weight ratio), was investigated. Optical snapshots supported by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) measurements showed that mainly ß and α forms of nifedipine grow up in all investigated samples. They also revealed that the morphology of growing crystals strongly depends on the presence of modified carbohydrates and temperature conditions. Interestingly, it was found that the activation barrier for the crystal growth of the ß polymorph is not affected by acetylated saccharides while the one estimated for the α form changes significantly from 48.5 kJ/mol (pure API) up to 122 kJ/mol (NIF-acMAL system). Moreover, the relationship between the crystal growth rate and structural relaxation times for pure NIF and solid dispersions were analyzed. It turned out that there is a clear decoupling between the crystal growth rate and structural dynamics in both NIF-acMAL and NIF-acSUC binary mixtures. This is in line with recent reports indicating the decoupling phenomenon to be a universal feature of soft matter in the close vicinity of the glass transition temperature.

Interplay between the static ordering and dynamical heterogeneities determining the dynamics of rotation and ordinary liquid phases in 1,6-anhydro-ß-D-glucose.

In this letter, we reported thorough the structural and molecular dynamics studies on 1,6-anhydro-ß-D-glucose, the second compound reported so far that is capable to form rotator and supercooled liquid phases. In contrast to the data presented for ethanol, temperature dependences of structural dynamics in both phases are very comparable. On the other hand, X ray measurements revealed unusually long range ordering/correlations between molecules in the ODIC (d ≈ 95 Å) and supercooled phases (d ≈ 30-40 Å) of this carbohydrate. Our consideration clearly demonstrated that the interplay between length scales of static range ordering and dynamical heterogeneities as well as internal molecular arrangement seem to be the key to understanding the molecular dynamics of different materials characterized by varying degree of disorder in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature.

Room temperature sputter deposited catalyst-free nanowires with wurtzite/zinc blende ZnO superstructure and their application in electromechanical nanogenerators on polymer and paper substrates.

Catalyst-free growth of ZnO nanowires using reactive magnetron sputtering at room temperature is reported. We discuss the growth of the nanowires using reactive magnetron sputtering as a function of argon and oxygen flow values changing at a set ratio of 10:2. A transition from nanostructured Zn to nanowire ZnO growth is observed at 20 sccm Ar and 4 sccm O2. Densification and improved alignment of the nanowires is visible for increasing flow values up to 50 sccm Ar and 10 sccm O2. Nanowires exhibit stacking fault regions of zinc blende ZnO in wurtzite ZnO. The regions encompass the whole width of the nanowires and their quantum well behavior is manifested in the photoluminescence spectra. The nanowires were subsequently deposited on paper and PET substrates and electromechanical nanogenerators were fabricated. Manual pressing and depressing of the devices induced voltages of 50 µV and 2 µV for the devices on PET and paper substrates, respectively.

Studying of crystal growth and overall crystallization of naproxen from binary mixtures.

Broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were applied to investigate the molecular dynamics and phase transitions in binary mixtures composed of naproxen (NAP) and acetylated saccharides: maltose (acMAL) and sucrose (acSUC). Moreover, the application of BDS method and optical microscopy enabled us to study both crystallization kinetics and crystal growth of naproxen from the solid dispersions with the highest content of modified carbohydrates (1:5wt ratio). It was found that the activation barriers of crystallization estimated from dielectric measurements are completely different for both studied herein mixtures. Much higher Ea (=205kJ/mol) was obtained for NAP-acMAL solid dispersion. It is probably due to simultaneous crystallization of both components of the mixture. On the other hand, lower value of Ea in the case of NAP-acSUC solid dispersion (81kJ/mol) indicated, that naproxen is the only crystallizing compound. This hypothesis was confirmed by X-ray diffraction studies. We also suggested that specific intermolecular dipole-dipole interactions between active substance and excipient may be an alternative explanation for the difference between activation barrier obtained for NAP-acMAL and NAP-acSUC binary mixtures. Furthermore, optical measurements showed that the activation energy for crystal growth of naproxen increases in binary mixtures. They also revealed that both excipients: acMAL and acSUC move the temperature of the maximum of crystal growth towards lower temperatures. Interestingly, this maximum occurs for nearly the same structural relaxation time, which is a good approximation of viscosity, for all samples. Finally, it was also noticed that although naproxen crystallizes to the same polymorphic form in both systems, there are some differences in morphology of obtained crystals. Thus, the observed behavior may have a significant impact on the bioavailability and dissolution rate of API produced in that way.

High pressure dielectric studies on the structural and orientational glass.

High pressure dielectric studies on the H-bonded liquid D-glucose and Orientationally Disordered Crystal (ODIC) 1,6-anhydro-D-glucose (levoglucosan) were carried out. It was shown that in both compounds, the structural relaxation is weakly sensitive to compression. It is well reflected in the low pressure coefficient of the glass transition and orientational glass transition temperatures which is equal to 60 K/GPa for both D-glucose and 1,6-anhydro-D-glucose. Although it should be noted that ∂Tg(0)/∂p evaluated for the latter compound seems to be enormously high with respect to other systems forming ODIC phase. We also found that the shape of the α-loss peak stays constant for the given relaxation time independently on the thermodynamic condition. Consequently, the Time Temperature Pressure (TTP) rule is satisfied. This experimental finding seems to be quite intriguing since the TTP rule was shown to work well in the van der Waals liquids, while in the strongly associating compounds, it is very often violated. We have also demonstrated that the sensitivity of the structural relaxation process to the temperature change measured by the steepness index (mp) drops with pressure. Interestingly, this change is much more significant in the case of D-glucose with respect to levoglucosan, where the fragility changes only slightly with compression. Finally, kinetics of ODIC-crystal phase transition was studied at high compression. It is worth mentioning that in the recent paper, Tombari and Johari [J. Chem. Phys. 142, 104501 (2015)] have shown that ODIC phase in 1,6-anhydro-D-glucose is stable in the wide range of temperatures and there is no tendency to form more ordered phase at ambient pressure. On the other hand, our isochronal measurements performed at varying thermodynamic conditions indicated unquestionably that the application of pressure favors solid (ODIC)-solid (crystal) transition in 1,6-anhydro-D-glucose. This result mimics the impact of pressure on the crystallization of fully disordered supercooled van der Waals liquids.

Rint1 inactivation triggers genomic instability, ER stress and autophagy inhibition in the brain.

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, defective autophagy and genomic instability in the central nervous system are often associated with severe developmental defects and neurodegeneration. Here, we reveal the role played by Rint1 in these different biological pathways to ensure normal development of the central nervous system and to prevent neurodegeneration. We found that inactivation of Rint1 in neuroprogenitors led to death at birth. Depletion of Rint1 caused genomic instability due to chromosome fusion in dividing cells. Furthermore, Rint1 deletion in developing brain promotes the disruption of ER and Cis/Trans Golgi homeostasis in neurons, followed by ER-stress increase. Interestingly, Rint1 deficiency was also associated with the inhibition of the autophagosome clearance. Altogether, our findings highlight the crucial roles of Rint1 in vivo in genomic stability maintenance, as well as in prevention of ER stress and autophagy.

Changes in dynamics of the glass-forming pharmaceutical nifedipine in binary mixtures with octaacetylmaltose.

Some molecular glass-formers can crystallize in the glassy state, some of which are van der Waals molecules and some are pharmaceuticals. The molecular mechanism responsible for this glass-to-crystal mode of crystallization is of interest to the glass transition research community as well as to the pharmaceutical industry because the effect is detrimental to stability of amorphous form of the drugs stored below the glass transition temperature. Two prominent models have been proposed for the molecular mechanism. In the homogeneous nucleation-based crystallization model, the molecular mechanism is the secondary relaxation, and the other model assumes that the molecular process responsible for crystal growth in the glassy state is from the local molecular motions. Crystal growth requires motion of the entire molecule, and in the glassy state the only such local molecular motion is engendered by the secondary relaxation of the Johari-Goldstein (JG) kind. While the JG secondary relaxation is the crux in the two models of glass-to-crystal growth, it has not been found in the glassy state of the pharmaceuticals studied so far. The examples include 5-methyl-2-[(2-nitrophenyl)amino]-3-thiophenecarbonitrile (ROY), indomethacin (IMC) and nifedipine (NIF). In the absence of any evidence of the JG secondary relaxation, the conundrum is that the two models of glass-to-crystal growth cannot be validated. It turns out these pharmaceuticals all have structural α-relaxations with narrow frequency dispersion. Empirically, glass-formers with narrow α-dispersion have JG secondary relaxation with weak relaxation strength, not well separated from the α-relaxation, and hence cannot be resolved. Theoretically, the narrow width of the α-dispersion is due to weak intermolecular coupling. In this article we enhance the intermolecular coupling of NIF by mixing with octaacetylmaltose to enhance the intermolecular coupling of NIF. In this way we have successfully resolved the JG secondary relaxation in the dielectric loss spectra of the NIF component in the glassy state, and validated the two models of glass-to-crystal growth.

Studying the Impact of Modified Saccharides on the Molecular Dynamics and Crystallization Tendencies of Model API Nifedipine.

Molecular dynamics of pure nifedipine and its solid dispersions with modified carbohydrates as well as the crystallization kinetics of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) above and below the glass transition temperature were studied in detail by means of broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X-ray diffraction method. It was found that the activation barrier of crystallization increases in molecular dispersions composed of acetylated disaccharides, whereas it slightly decreases in those consisting of modified monocarbohydrates for the experiments carried out above the glass transition temperature. As shown by molecular dynamics simulations it can be related to the strength, character, and structure of intermolecular interactions between API and saccharides, which vary dependently on the excipient. Long-term physical stability studies showed that, in solid dispersions consisting of acetylated maltose and acetylated sucrose, the crystallization of nifedipine is dramatically slowed down, although it is still observable for a low concentration of excipients. With increasing content of modified carbohydrates, the crystallization of API becomes completely suppressed. This is most likely due to additional barriers relating to the intermolecular interactions and diffusion of nifedipine that must be overcome to trigger the crystallization process.

Thermodynamic scaling of molecular dynamics in supercooled liquid state of pharmaceuticals: Itraconazole and ketoconazole.

Pressure-Volume-Temperature (PVT) measurements and broadband dielectric spectroscopy were carried out to investigate molecular dynamics and to test the validity of thermodynamic scaling of two homologous compounds of pharmaceutical activity: itraconazole and ketoconazole in the wide range of thermodynamic conditions. The pressure coefficients of the glass transition temperature (dT(g)/dp) for itraconazole and ketoconazole were determined to be equal to 183 and 228 K/GPa, respectively. However, for itraconazole, the additional transition to the nematic phase was observed and characterized by the pressure coefficient dT(n)/dp = 258 K/GPa. From PVT and dielectric data, we obtained that the liquid-nematic phase transition is governed by the relaxation time since it occurred at constant τ(α) = 10(-5) s. Furthermore, we plotted the obtained relaxation times as a function of T(-1)v(-γ), which has revealed that the validity of thermodynamic scaling with the γ exponent equals to 3.69 ± 0.04 and 3.64 ± 0.03 for itraconazole and ketoconazole, respectively. Further analysis of the scaling parameter in itraconazole revealed that it unexpectedly decreases with increasing relaxation time, which resulted in dramatic change of the shape of the thermodynamic scaling master curve. While in the case of ketoconazole, it remained the same within entire range of data (within experimental uncertainty). We suppose that in case of itraconazole, this peculiar behavior is related to the liquid crystals' properties of itraconazole molecule.

Impact of low molecular weight excipient octaacetylmaltose on the liquid crystalline ordering and molecular dynamics in the supercooled liquid and glassy state of itraconazole.

Different experimental and theoretical techniques were applied to investigate basic physical properties of very stable and homogeneous solid dispersions formed by itraconazole and octaacetylmaltose. Differential scanning calorimetry as well as semi-empirical calculations have indicated that liquid crystalline ordering in itraconazole was completely suppressed in the binary mixtures. Molecular dynamics studies with the use of broadband dielectric spectroscopy have shown that the width of the structural relaxation process becomes smaller and fragility drops in solid dispersions with respect to the pure itraconazole. Moreover, the dynamics of secondary relaxation processes was affected by acetylated maltose. As demonstrated, ß- and γ-secondary modes shift to higher and lower frequencies, respectively. On the other hand, aging experiments revealed that isostructural relaxation times in the glassy state become systematically longer with the addition of modified carbohydrate. This is a very important finding in the context of the current discussion on the factors affecting physical stability of easily crystallizing APIs. It seems that beside intermolecular interactions and local reorientation, the global mobility might control the crystallization of amorphous solid dispersions. Finally, we have demonstrated that itraconazole in binary mixtures dissolves faster and to greater extent with respect to the crystalline and amorphous form of this API.

Impact of inter- and intramolecular interactions on the physical stability of indomethacin dispersed in acetylated saccharides.

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), broadband dielectric (BDS), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies as well as theoretical computations were applied to investigate inter- and intramolecular interactions between the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) indomethacin (IMC) and a series of acetylated saccharides. It was found that solid dispersions formed by modified glucose and IMC are the least physically stable of all studied samples. Dielectric measurements showed that this finding is related to neither the global nor local mobility, as the two were fairly similar. On the other hand, combined studies with the use of density functional theory (DFT) and FTIR methods indicated that, in contrast to acetylated glucose, modified disaccharides (maltose and sucrose) interact strongly with indomethacin. As a result, internal H-bonds between IMC molecules become very weak or are eventually broken. Simultaneously, strong H-bonds between the matrix and API are formed. This observation was used to explain the physical stability of the investigated solid dispersions. Finally, solubility measurements revealed that the solubility of IMC can be enhanced by the use of acetylated carbohydrates, although the observed improvement is marginal due to strong interactions.