Estimation of the concentration boundary layer adjacent to a flat surface using computational fluid dynamics.

Dissolution-permeation (D/P) experiments are widely used during preclinical development due to producing results with better predictability than traditional monophasic experiments. However, it is difficult to compare absorption across in vitro setups given the propensity to only report apparent permeability. We therefore developed an approach to predict the concentration boundary layer for any D/P device by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The Navier-Stokes and continuity equation in 2D were solved numerically in MATLAB and by finite element methods in COMSOL v6.1 to predict the momentum [Formula: see text] and concentration ηg boundary layer for a flow over a flat plate, i.e. the classical Blasius boundary layer flow. A MATLAB algorithm was developed to calculate the edge of either boundary layer. The methodology to determine the concentration boundary layer based on Blasius's analysis provided an accurate estimate for both [Formula: see text] and ηg, resulting in, [Formula: see text] , at high Schmidt numbers (Sc âˆ¼ 1000) within 14 % of the Blasius solution and 6.6 % of the accepted Schmidt number correlation ( [Formula: see text] ). The methodology based on the Blasius analysis of the concentration boundary layer using velocity and concentration profiles computed using CFD presented herein will enable characterization/analysis of complex D/P apparatuses used in preclinical development, where an analytical solution may not be available.

Particle Size, Dose, and Confinement Affect Passive Diffusion Flux through the Membrane Concentration Boundary Layer.

The authors present a steady-state-, particle-size-, and dose-dependent dissolution-permeation model that describes particle dissolution within the concentration boundary layer (CBL) adjacent to a semipermeable surface. It is critical to understand how particle size and dose affect the behavior of dissolving particles in the presence of a CBL adjacent to a semipermeable surface both in vivo and in vitro. Control of particle size is ubiquitous in the pharmaceutical industry; however, traditional pharmaceutical assumptions of particle dissolution typically ignore particle dissolution within the length scale of the CBL. The CBL does not physically prevent particles from traveling to the semipermeable surface (mucus, epithelial barrier, synthetic membrane, etc.), and particle dissolution can occur within the CBL thickness (δC) if the particle is sufficiently small (∼dparticle ≤ δC). The total flux (the time rate transport of molecules across the membrane surface per unit area) was chosen as a surrogate parameter for measuring the additional mass generated by particles dissolving within the donor CBL. Mass transfer experiments aimed to measure the total flux of drug using an ultrathin large-area membrane diffusion cell described by Sinko et al. with a silicone-based membrane ( Mol. Pharmaceutics 2020, 17, (7) 2319-2328, DOI: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.0c00040). Suspensions of ibuprofen, a model weak-acid drug, with three different particle-size distributions with average particle diameters of 6.6, 37.4, and 240 µm at multiple doses corresponding to a range of suspension concentrations with dimensionless dose numbers of 2.94, 14.7, 147, and 588 were used to test the model. Experimentally measured total flux across the semipermeable membrane/CBL region agreed with the predictions from the proposed model, and at a range of relatively low suspension concentrations, dependent on the average particle size, there was a measurable effect on the flux due to the difference in δC that formed at the membrane surface. Additionally, the dose-dependent total flux across the membrane was up to 10% higher than the flux predicted by the standard Higuchi-Hiestand dissolution model where the effects of confinement were ignored as described by Wang et al. ( Mol. Pharmaceutics 2012, 9 (5), 1052-1066, DOI: 10.1021/mp2002818).

Numerical simulation of peristalsis to study co-localization and intestinal distribution of a macromolecular drug and permeation enhancer.

In this work, simulations of intestinal peristalsis are performed to investigate the intraluminal transport of macromolecules (MMs) and permeation enhancers (PEs). Properties of insulin and sodium caprate (C10) are used to represent the general class of MM and PE molecules. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to obtain the diffusivity of C10, and coarse-grain molecular dynamics simulations were carried out to estimate the concentration-dependent diffusivity of C10. A segment of the small intestine with the length of 29.75 cm was modeled. Peristaltic speed, pocket size, release location, and occlusion ratio of the peristaltic wave were varied to study the effect on drug transport. It was observed that the maximum concentration at the epithelial surface for the PE and the MM increased by 397 % and 380 %, respectively, when the peristaltic wave speed was decreased from 1.5 to 0.5 cm s-1. At this wave speed, physiologically relevant concentrations of PE were found at the epithelial surface. However, when the occlusion ratio is increased from 0.3 to 0.7, the concentration approaches zero. These results suggest that a slower-moving and more contracted peristaltic wave leads to higher efficiency in transporting mass to the epithelial wall during the peristalsis phases of the migrating motor complex.

Intrinsic lipolysis rate for systematic design of lipid-based formulations.

Lipid-based formulations (LBFs) are used by the pharmaceutical industry in oral delivery systems for both poorly water-soluble drugs and biologics. Digestibility is key for the performance of LBFs and in vitro lipolysis is commonly used to compare the digestibility of LBFs. Results from in vitro lipolysis experiments depend highly on the experimental conditions and formulation characteristics, such as droplet size (which defines the surface area available for digestion) and interfacial structure. This study introduced the intrinsic lipolysis rate (ILR) as a surface area-independent approach to compare lipid digestibility. Pure acylglycerol nanoemulsions, stabilized with polysorbate 80 at low concentration, were formulated and digested according to a standardized pH-stat lipolysis protocol. A methodology originally developed to calculate the intrinsic dissolution rate of poorly water-soluble drugs was adapted for the rapid calculation of ILR from lipolysis data. The impact of surfactant concentration on the apparent lipolysis rate and lipid structure on ILR was systematically investigated. The surfactant polysorbate 80 inhibited lipolysis of tricaprylin nanoemulsions in a concentration-dependent manner. Coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations supported these experimental observations. In the absence of bile and phospholipids, tricaprylin was shielded from lipase at 0.25% polysorbate 80. In contrast, the inclusion of bile salt and phospholipid increased the surfactant-free area and improved the colloidal presentation of the lipids to the enzyme, especially at 0.125% polysorbate 80. At a constant and low surfactant content, acylglycerol digestibility increased with decreasing acyl chain length, decreased esterification, and increasing unsaturation. The calculated ILR of pure acylglycerols was successfully used to accurately predict the IRL of binary lipid mixtures. The ILR measurements hold great promise as an efficient method supporting pharmaceutical formulation scientists in the design of LBFs with specific digestion profiles.

Ultrathin, Large-Area Membrane Diffusion Cell for pH-Dependent Simultaneous Dissolution and Absorption Studies.

Preclinical evaluation of modern oral dosage forms requires more advanced in vitro devices as the trend of selecting low solubility, high permeability compounds for commercial development continues. Current dissolution methodologies may not always be suitable for such compounds due to excessive fluid volume, high fluid shear rates, heterogeneity of shear rates, suboptimal fluid flow, and, ultimately, the lack of absorption ability (Gray The Science of USP 1 and 2 Dissolution: Present Challenges and Future Relevance; Pharmaceutical Research, 2009; Vol. 26; pp 1289-1302). Herein, a new dissolution apparatus is introduced in combination with an ultrathin, semipermeable polymer membrane that mimics human passive absorption for lipophilic compounds. The ultrathin large-area polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane (UTLAM) absorption system is designed to mimic the dissolution and passive transcellular diffusion process representing the oral absorption pathway. A simple spin-casting method was developed to fabricate the ultrathin highly uniform membranes. To minimize membrane resistance to diffusion and maximize transport across the polymer membrane, 10-40 µm PDMS membranes were successfully prepared. A new diffusion cell was designed and tested to support the UTLAM and incorporates a hydrofoil impeller for more desirable hydrodynamics and mixing, using ibuprofen as a model weak acidic drug. UTLAM permeability was sufficiently high that the aqueous boundary layer contributed to the overall permeability of the system. This diffusion cell system demonstrated that, when the aqueous diffusion layer contributes to the overall resistance to transport, the pH at which absorption is 50% of maximum (pH50%) shifts from the pKa to higher values, demonstrating why weak acid drugs can exhibit high absorption at pH's significantly greater than their pKa. High rates of transport across the UTLAM are possible for drugs with high partition coefficients (i.e., BCS II compounds even under mostly ionized conditions), and PDMS UTLAMs may be tailored to simulate human intestinal passive absorption rates.

Formulation predictive dissolution (fPD) testing to advance oral drug product development: An introduction to the US FDA funded '21st Century BA/BE' project.

Over the past decade, formulation predictive dissolution (fPD) testing has gained increasing attention. Another mindset is pushed forward where scientists in our field are more confident to explore the in vivo behavior of an oral drug product by performing predictive in vitro dissolution studies. Similarly, there is an increasing interest in the application of modern computational fluid dynamics (CFD) frameworks and high-performance computing platforms to study the local processes underlying absorption within the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In that way, CFD and computing platforms both can inform future PBPK-based in silico frameworks and determine the GI-motility-driven hydrodynamic impacts that should be incorporated into in vitro dissolution methods for in vivo relevance. Current compendial dissolution methods are not always reliable to predict the in vivo behavior, especially not for biopharmaceutics classification system (BCS) class 2/4 compounds suffering from a low aqueous solubility. Developing a predictive dissolution test will be more reliable, cost-effective and less time-consuming as long as the predictive power of the test is sufficiently strong. There is a need to develop a biorelevant, predictive dissolution method that can be applied by pharmaceutical drug companies to facilitate marketing access for generic and novel drug products. In 2014, Prof. Gordon L. Amidon and his team initiated a far-ranging research program designed to integrate (1) in vivo studies in humans in order to further improve the understanding of the intraluminal processing of oral dosage forms and dissolved drug along the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, (2) advancement of in vitro methodologies that incorporates higher levels of in vivo relevance and (3) computational experiments to study the local processes underlying dissolution, transport and absorption within the intestines performed with a new unique CFD based framework. Of particular importance is revealing the physiological variables determining the variability in in vivo dissolution and GI absorption from person to person in order to address (potential) in vivo BE failures. This paper provides an introduction to this multidisciplinary project, informs the reader about current achievements and outlines future directions.

In Vitro Characterization of the Biomimetic Properties of Poly(dimethylsiloxane) To Simulate Oral Drug Absorption.

The potential use of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) as an in vitro biomimetic analogue of the passive drug absorption process in the human gastrointestinal tract (GI) is assessed. PDMS is biomimetic because of similarities in small molecule transport, such as mechanism, ionization selectivity, lipophilicity. Nine molecular probes are used to evaluate the transport pathways and properties used to predict human oral absorption rates. The transport pathways through PDMS (bulk/pore) are analogous to transcellular (TCDT) and paracellular (PCDT) drug transport pathways. PDMS PCDT is assessed using positronium annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) and partition experiments; TCDT using diffusion and partition experiments. PALS determined that PDMS pores were uniform (D ∼ 0.85 nm), isolated, and void volume was unaffected by drug accumulation after equilibrium partitioning. Therefore, there is no PCDT or convective flow through PDMS. A strong linear correlation exists between predicted octanol-water partition coefficients and PDMS partition coefficients (LogKPDMS = 0.736 × LogPO-W - 0.971, R2 = 0.981). The pH-partition hypothesis is confirmed in PDMS using ibuprofen over pH 2-12. Diffusivity through PDMS is a function of lipophilicity and polar surface area K × DPDMS = 4.46 × 10-8 × e2.91×LogKPDMS(R2 = 0.963) and [Formula: see text] (R2 = 0.973). Varying the mass% of curing agent changed the lipophilicity and diffusivity (p < 0.02), but not practically (K × D = 2.23 × 10-5cm2s-1 vs 2.60 × 10-5cm2s-1), and does affect elastic modulus (3.2% = 0.3 MPa to 25% = 3.2 MPa).

Printing of small molecular medicines from the vapor phase.

There is growing need to develop efficient methods for early-stage drug discovery, continuous manufacturing of drug delivery vehicles, and ultra-precise dosing of high potency drugs. Here we demonstrate the use of solvent-free organic vapor jet printing to deposit nanostructured films of small molecular pharmaceutical ingredients, including caffeine, paracetamol, ibuprofen, tamoxifen, BAY 11-7082 and fluorescein, with accuracy on the scale of micrograms per square centimeter, onto glass, Tegaderm, Listerine tabs, and stainless steel microneedles. The printed films exhibit similar crystallographic order and chemistry as the original powders; controlled, order-of-magnitude enhancements of dissolution rate are observed relative to powder-form particles. In vitro treatment of breast and ovarian cancer cell cultures in aqueous media by tamoxifen and BAY 11-7082 films shows similar behavior to drugs pre-dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide. The demonstrated precise printing of medicines as films, without the use of solvents, can accelerate drug screening and enable continuous manufacturing, while enhancing dosage accuracy.Traditional approaches used in the pharmaceutical industry are not precise or versatile enough for customized medicine formulation and manufacture. Here the authors produce a method to form coatings, with accurate dosages, as well as a means of closely controlling dissolution kinetics.

Processing challenges with solid dosage formulations containing vitamin E TPGS.

The objective of this study is to investigate processing challenges associated with the incorporation of Vitamin E TPGS (d-α tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate) into solid pharmaceutical dosage forms. For this work, a wet granulation process (high-shear and fluid bed) was used and Vitamin E TPGS was added as part of the binder solution during granulation. It was shown that Vitamin E TPGS can be incorporated into a prototype formulation at 10% w/w concentration without any significant processing challenges. However, the resulting granulations could only be compressed successfully at low tablet press speeds (dwell time ~100 ms). When compressed at low dwell times (<20 ms) representative of commercial tablet manufacturing, a significant loss in compactability was observed. In addition, several other tablet defects were observed. It was shown that intragranular incorporation of Aeroperl(®) 300, a granulated form of colloidal silicon dioxide, was able to overcome these compaction problems. The formulation consisting of Aeroperl(®) 300 showed significantly lower granule particle size, higher granule porosity and higher compactability as compared to the formulation without Aeroperl(®) 300.