Formulation and Drug Delivery

Based on formulation simplicity and blinding capability, hard gelatin capsules are preferrable compared with other oral solid dosage forms, including tablets, in the early clinical phases of drug development.

Orally disintegrating tablets offer numerous advantages compared with traditional tablets and capsules, and can be an effective solution for developing line extensions of currently marketed therapies.

The identification of an increasing number of drug targets coupled with advances in manufacturing technology could lead to many more blockbuster therapeutic antibodies.

Also, Roche's Avastin trial does not meet endpoint; Innate Pharma names regulatory VP; more...

Also: Sanofi-aventis acquires BiPar Sciences; FDA issues Warning Letter to Chinese heparin manufacturer; Halo Pharmaceutical appoints chief scientific officer; more...

The United States Pharmacopeial (USP) Convention signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Federal Service on Surveillance in Healthcare and Social Development of the Russian Federation (Roszdravnadzor) last week in Moscow.

Also, Sanofi-aventis acquires Medley and Laboratorios Kendrick; Eli Lilly's Cook to retire from board; more...

Also, Genzyme and Bayer HealthCare form agreement; FDA releases draft guidances; TransMolecular appointed Robert Radie president and CEO

Follow-on biologics or biosimilars offer a niche growth market for the pharmaceutical industry. As the process for establishing a regulatory pathway for biosimilars is debated, companies, including Big Pharma, are positioning themselves to gain this piece of the pharmaceutical pie.

Also, SOCMA changes name; two FDA approvals; Biogen Idec names chief operating officer; more...

Obama's cost-containment and science-innovation initiatives need to overlap.

A review of recent product innovations, policy developments, and growth prospects in the excipients market.

A Position Paper from the AAPS In Vitro Release and Dissolution Focus Group

The financial and economic downturn is likey to have long-term implications for outsourcing.

The number of biotechnology-based human therapeutic products in the late-stage pipeline along with the average cost to commercialize a biotech product has been steadily increasing with time. In addition, the biotech industry is facing unprecedented challenges of a sagging global economy and rising regulatory expectations. Companies have to continue to evolve their approaches to be more efficient with respect to time, resources and cost. This article describes some of the technologies that can help optimize time and cost of biopharmaecutical manufacturing.

The authors demonstrate how melt-extrusion and spray-drying methods can help to prepare solid dispersions of poorly soluble drugs using Eudragit polymers.

The authors examine common superdisintegrants (i.e., crospovidone Type A, crospovidone Type B, croscarmellose sodium, and sodium starch glycolate) with a set of poorly soluble drug actives and evaluate in vitro drug dissolution.

The authors examine the use of a novel highly functional pregelatinized starch as a controlled-release matrix excipient.

The authors studied the behavior of anhydrous lactose and the combination of anhydrous lactose and the combination of anhydrous lactose with microcrystalline cellulose on a pilot-scale roller compactor.

The authors examine the use of a hypromellose-based product as an excipient in a controlled release formulation using direct-compression tableting.

Also, Hospira to reduce workforce; WuXi AppTech makes senior appointments; more...

A bipartisan bill that would establish a regulatory pathway for the approval of biosimilars was introduced into the US House of Representatives last week.

Also, Genzyme receives warning letter; Mesa Laboratories appoints John J. Sullivan CEO and a member of the board of directors; more...

The spotlight on the biopharmaceutical industry is intensifying, as recently evidenced by Pfizer's (New York) ongoing acquisition of Wyeth (Madison, NJ), which was initiated partly to reduce the former's dependence on small-molecule drugs.

Also, Penn Pharma to expand; stem cell research funding ban lifted; Bristol-Myers Squibb made senior appointments; more...