3D printing of five-in-one dose combination polypill with defined immediate and sustained release profiles

Khaled, Shaban A.; Burley, Jonathan C.; Alexander, Morgan R.; Yang, Jing; Roberts, Clive J.

Abstract

We have used three dimensional (3D) extrusion printing to manufacture a multi-active solid dosage form or so called polypill. This contains five compartmentalised drugs with two independently controlled and well-defined release profiles. This polypill demonstrates that complex medication regimes can be combined in a single personalised tablet. This could potentially improve adherence for those patients currently taking many separate tablets and also allow ready tailoring of a particular drug combination/drug release for the needs of an individual. The polypill here represents a cardiovascular treatment regime with the incorporation of an immediate release compartment with aspirin and hydrochlorothiazide and three sustained release compartments containing pravastatin, atenolol, and ramipril. X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) and Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) were used to assess drug-excipient interaction. The printed polypills were evaluated for drug release using USP dissolution testing. We found that the polypill showed the intended immediate and sustained release profiles based upon the active/excipient ratio used.

Citation

Khaled, S. A., Burley, J. C., Alexander, M. R., Yang, J., & Roberts, C. J. (in press). 3D printing of five-in-one dose combination polypill with defined immediate and sustained release profiles. Journal of Controlled Release, 217, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconrel.2015.09.028

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 16, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Sep 25, 2015
• Deposit Date: Oct 20, 2016
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 20, 2016
• Journal: Journal of Controlled Release
• Print ISSN: 0168-3659
• Electronic ISSN: 1873-4995
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 217
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconrel.2015.09.028
• Keywords: 3D printing; Polypill; Sustained release; Immediate release; Personalised medicine
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/760622
• Publisher URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168365915301292