Pharmaceutics (Mar 2021)

Continuous Manufacture and Scale-Up of Theophylline-Nicotinamide Cocrystals

  • Steven A. Ross,
  • Andrew P. Hurt,
  • Milan Antonijevic,
  • Nicolaos Bouropoulos,
  • Adam Ward,
  • Pat Basford,
  • Mark McAllister,
  • Dennis Douroumis

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics13030419
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 3
p. 419

Abstract

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The aim of the study was the manufacturing and scale-up of theophylline-nicotinamide (THL-NIC) pharmaceutical cocrystals processed by hot-melt extrusion (HME). The barrel temperature profile, feed rate and screw speed were found to be the critical processing parameters with a residence time of approximately 47 s for the scaled-up batches. Physicochemical characterization using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X-ray diffraction of bulk and extruded materials revealed the formation of high purity cocrystals (98.6%). The quality of THL-NIC remained unchanged under accelerated stability conditions.

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